Unexpected Guest
by TTalks
Summary: After being brutally attacked Brittany shows up to Santana's door unexpectedly after being estranged for years. Can Santana save the former love of her life and rekindle their relationship. *Suspense*Drama*Romance*Thriller*
1. Chapter 1

**I decided to rewrite my first story Unexpected Guest…for those of you that started reading the first one…forget everything you read. Lol. This one is going to be different since I don't remember all of the first story. The story line will be the same but I'm switching some main things up…hope you still like it. **

**The story is mainly told from Santana's POV unless otherwise noted.**

When you love someone like really love someone the feeling never goes away, in my mind it means that person stills loves you back, just as much, maybe more. That's what I tell myself about Brittany every day. See after high school, I went to Louisville and Brit had to repeat her senior year. I still kick myself in the ass for not noticing she was failing every single class but that's water under the bridge now. I made the huge mistake of breaking up Brittany because well it wasn't supposed to be an official break up, I told her that but maybe she didn't really understand that I just need a little time to adjust to college life. My ultimate plan was to come back to my Brit Brit but she moved on with fuckin Trouty Mouth…..Trouty Mouth. It still absolutely pisses me off. Just thinking bout Sam sends my brain straight to Lima Heights! Whew, let me take a deep breath here. I've been working on my temper, Quinn even convinced me to go to Yoga with her on Saturdays to relieve stress. It works I guess. It obviously works for her because she is dating Puck again and she honestly seems happy.

Anyways, after Brit picked Sam over me after my kick ass sing off with him. I mean let's be real I sang him out of the water, don't get me wrong Sam has some pipes, his big ass mouth has to be good for something right? I ended up risking everything and moving to New York. I lived with Kurt and Rachel for a few years while I worked a number of random jobs to save money. My favorite job was working as a radio personality on this big morning show; with my awesome personality I made a lot of celebrity friends. Along with getting tons of swag from sponsors, it gained me entry to some of the hottest parties in the city constantly skyrocketing me straight to the top of the socialite list in New York. I also worked as a bartender and waitress at a swanky restaurant downtown, which is where I made the majority of my savings. Those rich white-collar snobs tip well, very well. I added that money to stash of money my mom gave me from graduation, put together a brilliant business plan and bought a restaurant, which I affectionately named _Snixx._

_Snixx_ gained popularity very quickly since I was able to promote it on the radio show and get celebs to come and eat there. Before I knew it I was able to live this cushy life I have now. I'm 29 years old, I own an awesome 4 bedroom, 3 bath condo in downtown Manhattan. I drive a brand new black Range Rover. I am my own boss. I can afford to buy myself everything and anything I want. The only thing missing from my life is LOVE.

I kept in touch with Brit sporadically after moving to New York but not often. I actually haven't talked to her in probably 5 years. Last I heard she was touring with Beyoncé over seas, but that was a few years ago. Rachel sends out these annoying ass New Directions life updates that I never read. Berry should know that I don't read any of her emails, which is probably how I missed her engagement party to Finn a few weeks back. Oops. I mean I sent a gift after Quinn cussed me out, that makes it ok right? Considering the amount of money I spent on Hobbit and Finnocence they should be grateful either way.

I haven't dated much in New York, I had a few random hook ups with some super hot girls but nothing too serious. My mind always went back to the tall blonde with killer abs, and piercing blue eyes that would always have the only key to my heart. It's not like I haven't tried to call Brit. I've picked up my phone tons of times and dialed the first 6 digits of her number before quickly hanging up. Why? I have no clue…I think a part of is scared she has moved on with another man or woman and I'm a forgotten love from her past. The last thing I want is to end up on one of those trashy day time talk shows crying over how the same person has rejected not once, not twice, but three times. So times like this when my mind wanders to Brit and think of calling her. I put on music and sip wine.

Now I know that makes me sounds like a lush or alcoholic but I'm neither. I just enjoy a good Merlot. So right now I'm sipping this expensive ass bottle of Merlot that I received as a gift from Rihanna a few years back when she hosted her birthday party at my restaurant. I go to my memory chest that tucked in the corner of living room next to my sectional and start going through pictures when there is a knock on the door.

I get up to head to the door when Quinn uses her key and walks in.

"So what's the point of you knocking if you going to let yourself in?" I asked with her a smirk while hugging her tightly and kissing her on the cheek.

"You are drinking merlot and listening to jazz." Quinn raised an eyebrow while picking up my glass and sipping.

"Hey, get your own." I tell her while quickly taking my glass back.

"Stingy ass." She smirks while picking up a wine glass from the bar in the corner and pouring herself a glass and sitting down on the sectional next to me.

"So to what do I owe this unannounced visit?" I ask her while sitting Indian style on the sectional to face my best friend.

"You've been crying." She says softly.

I quickly reach up and touch my cheek feeling wetness that I didn't know was even there. Did I forget to mention that sometimes I cry while I drink wine and think about Brit….but that's a minor detail.

"Oh…." I shrug. "It's my allergies."

"Allergies in September?" Quinn questions.

"Can we please drop it Q." I say softly as she leans over and wipes my tears.

Quinn nodded. "I will drop it for now babe. But we will talk about this tomorrow morning ok?"

"Thanks." I reply while taking a sip of my wine.

"Oh, and I'm here because I need to stay here tonight."

"Why? What's going on at your place?" I ask her.

"Nothing, but Puck is picking me up here for a date in like 30 minutes and I don't want to drive all the way home later tonight." Quinn replied casually while picking up some of the pictures I had on the table.

"Ok, take the guest room." I told her. "Is Puck staying too?"

Puck actually lived over the bridge in New Jersey, and Quinn lived out in the boonies so it wasn't unusual for the two of them to stay at my place, which is why they both have keys.

"I don't know, he has a photo-shoot early in the morning." Quinn said slowly. "Is it okay if he does?"

I nod. " Yeah as long as I dont wake up to the two of you having sex on my fuckin couch again." I cringe at the memory every time.

Quinn fell over laughing. "I promise that wont happen."

Quinn was quiet for a few minutes. "Did you eat dinner yet?"

I shook my head. I was so wrapped up in my thoughts earlier I guess I forgot to eat.

"Good because I ordered you Chinese, already paid for. Just tip the driver." Quinn said with a smile.

"Really? Thanks Q." I give her a huge hug.

"No problem." She shrugs it off as she picks up a picture of her, Brit, and me from nationals senior year. "The Unholy Trinity." She smiles.

I cant help but smile at the picture. I'm on Brittany's back holding up the trophy while Quinn is holding Brit's hand in the air. We look flawless. "That's one of my favorite pictures of us." I tell her.

"Speaking of Brit." Quinn says slowly. "She lives in New York now."

My eyes widen. "Since when?" I ask hesitantly. My thoughts instantly go to whether or not Brit has seen me around the town, have I seen her and not realized….no my heart would skip a beat. My body has always been aware of Brittany's presence.

"According to Rachel's emails a few months at the least." Quinn replied while taking another sip. "She opened up a dance studio."

I nod slowly and knock back my glass in one gulp. "That's good, she deserves her own studio." I saw slowly.

"San…."

"So." I quickly cut her off not wanting to talk about Brittany as I felt tears well in my eyes again knowing she was so close but so far away at the same time. "Where are you going to dinner at?"

Quinn frowned. "Are you serious? _Snixx_ of course!"

"What the hell Q? Did you make a reservation? Why didn't you tell me?" I spit out while quickly pulling out my phone and calling the restaurant ordering them to set up a private VIP booth for the both of them.

"You didn't have to do that San." Quinn said with a smile once I got off the phone.

"You have a private VIP table, with champagne waiting for you. Order whatever you want…its on the house." I tell her with a small smile. I loved spoiling my friends. I never ever make them pay at my restaurant, even though Quinn will sometimes leave a envelope with cash in my office which I always promptly stick back in her purse when I get a chance.

"Thanks." She says as I start to pour myself another glass of wine. "Here just finish mine, Puck should be here in a few minutes."

I nod and take her glass sipping slowly before leaning back and getting comfy. I open my mouth to say something as her cell phone chirps with a text message. I quickly snatch the phone out of her hand and read the text. It was from Puck.

**From Puck: Tell Satan to let you out of her lair…Im outside and there aren't any parks.**

I laugh and quickly reply as Quinn shakes her head and goes to put her jacket on.

**To Puck: Quinn isn't going anymore we are too busy have mind blowing sex. Lol**

**From Puck: In that case I see a park…be up in a minute. Lol**

I laugh and quickly reply back.

**To Puck: In your dreams FUCKerman**

**From Puck: Lol That's a good one, seriously San is she ready?**

**To Puck: Yeah she is coming down now, oh and I got you set up in a private VIP table, everything is on the house.**

**From Puck: Thanks, oh and I got your photoshoot set up for next week…we can go over details this weekend**

**To Puck: Works for me…have fun tonight.**

I was so involved in my text convo with Puck I didn't even notice Quinn standing in front of me with her hand out.

"Can I have my phone back now?" She asked while laughing.

"Absolutely." I toss the phone back at her and stand up walking her to the door. I give her a tight hug. "Thanks again for ordering me dinner."

"My pleasure." Quinn says while unlocking the door.

"I will probably be sleep when you get back, I have a slight headache." I tell her honestly.

"Ok, bye babe." She calls over her shoulder while walking down the hall.

I go hop in the shower hoping to relax a little since I suddenly felt kind of tense. I just hopped out of the shower as the doorbell rang. I was literally dripping wet. I swear I have the worse luck ever.

"Just a minute!" I scream out while quickly drying off and throwing on an old Cheerios hoodie and some warm furry shorts. I put my wet hair in a bun and run to the living room to get my purse to tip the guy.

There was a soft knock on the door.

"I'm sorry! I'm coming!"

I run to the door and swing it open. "Shit, I'm sorry, I was in the shower…." I start to say before looking up and noticing it wasn't the delivery guy but a woman.

She was standing with her head down, her legs has had cuts and blood all over them, as did her arms. Her shirt was ripped, and so was her skirt.

"C-can I help you?" I ask softly.

She doesn't respond, she slowly lifts her head a little but quickly looks back down.

I drop my wallet as my stomach does backflips and my heart drops. The woman has a huge bruise on the side of her face that literally covers her half her face, she has a black eye that's swollen, and her top lip is busted.

"M-miss, can I call someone for you…the p-police maybe?" I say softly.

She still doesn't respond. I rack my brain thinking of what to say next to get her to trust me enough to accept my help. I look down at her feet and see she is barefoot and one of ankles is extremely swollen and is turning an ugly shade of purple, I also noticed the trail of blood she left on the carpet in the hall leading up to my door.

She meant to come here; she didn't stop at any other doors. What the hell is going on? I look back at the woman.

"Sanny?" She says quietly.

I lose my breath, how does she know me. I reach my hand out slowly and hesitantly place it under the women's chin and lift her head slowly. She flickers her eyes up and locks eyes with me.

My eyes widen and my jaw drops open. "Oh my God Brittany…." Is all I can manage to whisper out before she suddenly turns and attempts to run down the hall.

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**SHOULD I CONTINUE?**


	2. Chapter 2 - You're Safe Now

**Surprise! Another chapter tonight! Enjoy!**

_My eyes widen and my jaw drops open. "Oh my God Brittany…." Is all I can manage to whisper out before she suddenly turns and attempts to run down the hall._

Attempts to is the key phrase, she must have forgotten her ankle is messed up or she didn't know because she only ran a step or two before her ankle gave out on her and she fell to the ground….hard.

I instantly ran to her on the ground. I reached out my hand to touch her but she quickly jumped back and painfully scooted herself to the wall resting her back on it.

"I'm not going to hurt you Brit." I whisper to her before quickly wiping the tear that betrayed me and slid down my cheek. I kneeled down in front of her trying to get her to look in my eyes. We always had this amazing connection where we could look each other in the eyes and have silent conversations. But she wouldn't look up at me again.

"I, I just want to help you." I say softly while extending my hand out slowly again and ghosting my fingers over the bruise on her face. She winced slightly so I retracted my hand. "What happened Brit?"

She shrugs and looks down. I'm not going to accept that as an answer but I know better than to push her right now.

"We need to call the police Brit. Looks like someone attacked you." She flickered her eyes up for a moment and shook her head quickly trying to get up again.

"You cant walk sweetheart please don't try to stand." I rush out quickly. Think Santana think! I rack my brain on what to do. I shouldn't have that damn wine I cant even think straight right now. "Can I clean you up Brit?"

She froze and her body tensed up which made my heart shatter. Brittany has never tensed up around me. If anything she was always most relaxed around me. I sighed softly and crawled to sit next to her, I purposely didn't sit as close as I wanted to, I knew she needed space so I sat a respectful distance away.

"Um, well you can use my bathroom to clean yourself up, I um, I can wait in the living room to give you privacy." I suggest.

She didn't respond she just kept looking down. After several minutes of silence, I finally spoke up. "We can't sit in the hall all night Brit, you need ice for your ankle so you can get back to dancing." I smile hoping to get a smile out of her but nope; she still had a stoic look on her face.

She slowly moved her hand and rested her fingertips on my fingers tips on the ground. I instantly felt that same surge of love and electricity that I get from Brittany's touch. I looked over at her; even though she didn't speak or make eye contact I knew she was finally accepting my help.

I moved my fingertips on top of hers and grazed them softly, reassuring her that I was going to protect her and keep her safe.

"I don't want you walking on your ankle, so I'm going to pick you up ok?" I told her as I bent down to lift her bridal style. Her body tensed up. I quickly took a step back to give her some space.

"It's just me Brit….your Sanny Bear." I said softly hoping to relax her by calling myself the pet name she gave me junior year of high school. It seemed to work because I saw her body relax again. I slowly reach down to pick her up again, she tensed but relaxed a few moments later and she instantly wrapped her arms around my neck tightly and rested her face in my neck. "I got you now." I whisper out.

I let out a shaky breath and walk slowly back in my condo closing the door behind me with my foot. I take her back to my bedroom and go straight to the bathroom and set her down on the toilet. I go to my Jacuzzi tub and start to fill it with water. I was going to put some of my bubble bath and different bath salts in but I figured it would burn her cuts and scrapes and I didn't want her in any more pain than she looked to be in already.

Once the tub filled up, I stuck my hand in to make sure the water wasn't too hot, and added some cold water to balance it out. "Brit I'm going to step out so you can clean yourself up ok?" I tell her but she quickly shakes her head and reaches for my hand.

"Do you want me to stay Brit?" I ask hesitantly. She nods slowly.

"Ok." I blink back tears, seeing her this beat up and desolate is painful. "Um, can I help you get cleaned up?"

She once again nods slowly.

"Good," I whisper out while pushing up the sleeves of my hoodie so they don't get wet. "I'm going to undress you Brit." I hope to God she doesn't freak out and I decide the best way to approach this is to talk her through it.

"Let's get your shirt off first ok." I say softly as stares at the ceiling. I keep my eyes on her face she doesn't think I'm ogling her goods or anything. I slowly unbutton the only two buttons that are left on the shirt, the others seemed to have been ripped off. Under the bright lights of the bathroom I can tell her shirt used to be white but it's now a dingy yellowish color marred with blonde. I swallow thickly as I slide the shirt off. I gasp as my eyes flicker down and I see all the scratches and cuts marking her chest and stomach. I unclasped her bra and let it fall to the ground. She didn't move or flinch of anything. It was getting scary at this point. My sweet Brittany was a shell of a person, she seemed completely devoid of emotion.

"Brit…" I breathe out as tears threaten to fall. I cover my sniffling of my tears with a fake sneeze. The last thing I wanted is for her to feel worse about herself.

"Still ok Brit?" I ask her but she doesn't look back down. "I uh, I'm going to take your skirt off now ok?" Her legs start to shake as I begin sliding it down so I quickly stand back up.

"Why don't you take your own skirt off Brit." I suggest. She shakes her head no. I sigh softly. "Im going to go really slow ok Brit." I tell her. "If you feel uncomfortable just uh, tap me on the head or something."

I bend over and slide down her skirt and panties the rest of the way and I gag at the dried blood in her panties and on her thighs and legs. It clicks in my head that she was raped and anger flashes through my whole body as my hands ball into fist at my sides as I cant hold in the tears that stream out. I carefully lift her legs so she can step out of the soiled garments and I kick them to the side quickly.

"H-here l-let me help you get in Brit." Once she is settled in the tub I sigh shakily as the water turns pink from the blood coming off of her. My stomach turns and I grab it discreetly to steady myself. I pick up the softest hand towel I have and gently wash her back, chest, arms, and legs in silence careful not to be too rough over the bruises and cuts.

I hand her the towel and turn my head to allow her to clean her personal body parts privately. When I hear the water stop moving I assume she is done and turn back around and smile softly at her even though she isn't looking at me. I have to smile to keep from crying at this point.

"Let's wash your hair Brit, um, then I will give clean up your cuts and wrap your ankle ok and you can lay down and rest for a bit." She nods slightly.

I reach over and grab my special shampoo. I've always hated my hair to smell like other people so I've always mixed a few different ones together, lavender vanilla and cinnamon. I know it sounds weird but I love it and I always get compliments on how great my hair smells. I cup some water in my hands and wet Brittany's hair.

"This is the shampoo you always used to love Brit…my special concoction." I start off. "Remember you said it smelled good enough to eat." I laughed softly. "So we both tried to drop." I gently massaged all of the blood out of her hair. I grabbed the showerhead and rinsed it out before washing it a second time for good measure.

I was running out of comforting words to say so I just started singing softly to her.

_For you, there'll be no more crying,_

_For you, the sun will be shining,_

_And I feel that when I'm with you,_

_It's alright, I know it's right_

_To you, I'll give the world_

_to you, I'll never be cold_

I sang that part over and over; it seemed the most fitting for this moment. I was really hoping to relax her and it seemed to work, her shoulders seemed to relax more. It was the only thing I could think of to let Brittany know I was going to help her and I wouldn't turn my back on her right now.

"Ready to get out?" I ask her and she nods. I quickly stand up and grab a towel and help her stand up wrapping the towel around her right away so she wouldn't get cold. I lift her out of the tub and use this opportunity to hug her tightly.

"You are safe now baby ok?" I tell her softly through tears. "I wont let anyone hurt you again Brit….I promise." I felt her nod and choke on a sob as she hid her face in my neck and allowed hot tears to coat my skin. I just held her tight as I could without hurting her.

Once she calmed down I picked her back up bridal style and carried her to my bed and set her down. I went to my walk in closet and pulled out yoga pants and a long sleeve t-shirt for her to put on. I then grabbed some new underwear and laid them out for her as well.

"I'm going to grab my first aid kit to clean up your cuts Brit, can you put the undergarments on?" She looked down and nodded.

I ran to the kitchen and got an icepack out of the freezer for her ankle, and I grabbed my first aid kit. When I went back to the bedroom I smiled at her, happy that she did as I asked her.

I quickly cleaned up as many of her cuts as I could before helping her get dressed and propping her up on a pile of pillows. I wrapped her ankle and set it carefully on a pillow with the ice pack on top.

"All better…well kind of." I say softly with a small smile she didn't look up she instead leaned her head back and closed her eyes.

"Um, are you hungry Brit? I can make you some soup or something…maybe a sandwich." She opened her eyes and made eye contact with me for the second time that night and shook her head.

I could tell in her eyes she was saying thank you. So I smiled at her. "You're welcome Brit." She then closed her eyes again.

I let out a shaky breath and went to the bathroom to clean it up and throw Brittany's clothes ruined clothes out. I had just drained the tub when the doorbell rang. I went to go grab the door and saw it was the deliveryman. After he apologized for being over an hour late and informing me he was gave me extra rice, big whoop, for being late he finally left. I set the food down on the counter no longer having an appetite.

I went back to the bedroom to check on Brittany, I was so scared to leave her. I don't know why, there was no one in my house but her and me…she was perfectly safe here, but I didn't want to leave her alone. I made a cold compress and gently laid it on her forehead.

"Cold." She whispered out hoarsely while opening her eyes slightly.

"I know….I'm sorry, but it will help. You feel really warm right now." I explain to her. She didn't respond she just closed her eyes again.

I stared at her for I don't even know how long, taking in the sight of my former lover and best friend beaten up and broken was too much. My stomach couldn't handle it. I walked quickly out of the room and went to the hall bathroom closing the door and turning on the shower and the faucet to disguise the sound before throwing up violently in the toilet.

I laid down on the cool tile floor and cried silently for Brittany, threatening to fucking kill whoever did that to her over and over in my head. After a few minutes, I composed myself and sat up slowly flushing the toilet. I pulled out one of the extra toothbrushes I kept for guests and opened it brushing my teeth quickly and washing my face. I had to stay strong for Brit, so I couldn't let her see any tear tracks on my face.

I walked slowly back to my bedroom and sat down on the chaise in my room and simply stared at her while she rested. Even with the bruise on her face and the black eye and the bust lip she was still the most beautiful woman in the world to me. I was lost in my thoughts when a loud knock on the door startled me so much I slipped off the chaise and wound up on the floor.

"Shit." I whispered to myself.

I got up slowly after falling on my knee. I winced in pain and I bent my leg back and forth hoping my knee wouldn't stiffen.

"Open the fuckin door!" A loud raspy voice growled out from the other side of the door.

I looked over at Brittany whose eyes were widened as tears streamed down her cheeks.

"Brit is someone after you?" I ask her quietly while turning off the light in my room.

She didn't respond she just curled in a ball as her body shook with tears and sobs.

"Brittany were you followed?" I asked her again while walking towards her.

"I SAID OPEN THE GOD DAMN DOOR. NOW!" The pounding was almost deafening. I jumped getting a little scared now myself, it sounds like whatever maniac is outside the door is going to break my door down.

I walk over to Brittany. "I will handle this Brit." I slip on some sneakers that are next to my bed. "Stay right here, don't move or leave the room at all for any reason unless you hear me yell for you too."

She nods slightly but she is still shaking, visibly terrified.

I take a shaky breath and leave the room closing the door behind me. I stop in the kitchen and pick up the biggest knife I can find.

"NOW!" The voice booms and pounds on the door again.

I swallow bile that creeps up my throat and raise the knife high above my head and swing the door open.

**I wonder who is at the door?!**

**Brittany POV coming soon...maybe next chapter**

**I respond to all reviews so dont hesitate to leave some...let me know what you like what you dont like...comments, criticisms, concerns are all appreciated. :)**


	3. Chapter 3 - Small Victories

**_So I decided to put myself on a schedule with updating my stories. _Forever Friends_, _Vacation Love_, and _Unexpected Guest_ will now only post new chapters on Wednesday nights, and Saturday mornings. (United States time)_**

**_That should be a little more helpful for Guest readers and reviewers who don't subscribe to the story._**

**_Thanks for all you support and reviews/pms everyone!_**

**_Oh Guest reviewers can you put a number or letter or something next Guest so it's easier for me to acknowledge you when I reply. Thanks. :)_**

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**Thanks for my BETA BodyBroke for all the suggestions and help.**

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**Thanks for all the reviews/favorites/follows. I look forward to reading all your thoughts in reviews. Lol**

**Im glad a few of you noticed right away that Santana shouldn't have given Brit a bath, that becomes really important later in the story.**

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**SkyBlue – Thanks for giving the story a chance this time around, Santana is the strong one throughout this story, she wavers a bit but overall she takes care of Brit the entire time. I think you are confusing this story with Forever Friends, Quinn wasn't raped in this story the first time I wrote it.**

**Lily – I hope you still love the story this time around Lol**

**To all the Guest reviewers – Thanks!**

**Rainbowbright108 – I love cliffhangers so I apologize now in advance for you heartattacks. Lol**

**Desshaje – Glad you enjoyed the first 2 chapters so far.**

**Prettygleekbitch – Thank you for the compliment….keep those tissues close. Lol**

**Gutty – Thank you!**

**ErrMerrGerd – Glad you like the story**

**Adrimarie97- Got more coming your way**

**Pheoberoz – Yes this crazy story was mine….Im reworking it so it will be different from the first time around**

**StephaniieC – Glad you enjoy my crazy writing Lol**

**Chemical Dreamer – Thank you**

**lg4az - Thanks for coming back around for the 2nd time :)**

**Slapper - Thanks for coming back for the 2nd time, glad you love it so far.**

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I take a shaky breath and leave the room closing the door behind me. I stop in the kitchen and pick up the biggest knife I can find.

"NOW!" The voice booms and pounds on the door again.

I swallow bile that creeps up my throat and raise the knife high above my head and swing the door open.

"S-sorry Santana, this is my brother." My nerdy neighbor from across the hall stutters out as he grabs his obviously ultra drunk brother's hand and pulls him towards his condo door. "He's had too much to drink and needs to use the bathroom probably, it's his first time in New York and he went to the wrong door."

He then looks up at my shaking hands, still holding the butcher knife above my head and takes a step back. I follow his gaze and slowly bring my hands down, laughing nervously.

"I, uh, I'm cutting a chicken up." I rush out quickly as I put the knife behind my back.

He seems to buy the lie and nods with this goofy smile. "Sorry again."

I sigh. "It's fine Stewart, just keep the douchebag in your condo for the rest of the night." I say with a small smile to break the tension.

"Well I better go, before he throws up or pees all over my living room." He says quietly and goes back to his door, quickly slipping back in.

Once the door closes, I let out a deep breath and grab my chest, which is super tight right now. I need an anxiety pill, but I've been drinking tonight so that's a no go. Shit! Brittany! I run back to the bedroom and open the door, instantly panicking because she isn't in bed anymore. I frantically look around my room.

"Brit?" I say softly. "It's ok…it's just my neighbor's dumbass company. Where are you?"

I hear a small whimper and run to the other side of the bed where she's in a ball shaking between the desk and the bed. As I get closer, I see she has vomited on herself… probably out of fear.

I sit on the floor in front of her. "Hey…" I reach my hand out slowly to rest it on her thigh, but she flinches, so I quickly retract my hand. Great, now all of our progress is gone. Internally, I roll my eyes.

"Looks like you need a new shirt to wear." I say softly. "I throw up when I'm nervous and scared too. Remember junior year before we performed Valerie and I threw up in the bathroom?" She flickers her eyes up to me and nods. "You told me it's nothing to be ashamed of." I remind her. "So don't feel bad about this, ok?" She nods again.

I stand up and look for another shirt in my closet. I find the t-shirt she gave me senior year that had a big orange cat on it. "How about this one?" I sit back down in front of her and hold the t-shirt up. I see her eyes look over the t-shirt and I swear they danced briefly, before she looked back down and nodded.

"I need to pick you back up to put you in the bed again so your ankle stays elevated, then I promise not to touch you or bother you again for the rest of the night, ok?" She nods and slowly sticks her arms out. I pick her up and sit her back on the bed where she was before. I carefully slip the dirty t-shirt off and put the new cat t-shirt on her and smile. "Looks good on you."

She keeps clearing her throat, well attempting to clear her throat…it sounds painful. "I'll get you some water and tea."

I run to the kitchen and grab a bottle of water, and quickly make her a mug of tea. Thank God, I have one of those water dispensers that gives me hot water instantly for tea and coffee. I toss a green tea bag in the water and bring it to her.

I set it on the bedside table. "Hey Brit." I say softly. She turns her head and slowly opens her eyes and peeps at me. "I got you some water and tea, try to drink a little for your throat, ok?" She quickly closes her eyes and turns her head back. The fact that she acknowledged me calling her name was a small victory for me. I didn't have time to celebrate, however, because I heard Quinn frantically calling my name.

"S-ssssannnnn?! Santana?!"

QUINN'S POV

After dinner with Puck, we headed back to Santana's house, since Puck was going to head back to Jersey and stay at his place since he worked the next morning. I picked up her favorite dessert from the restaurant to surprise her with.

It's always unsettling for me to see Santana cry, mainly because it doesn't happen too often. I knew something was up when I walked up to her door and heard the soft jazz playing. Santana only plays jazz music when she's sad or upset. Add the fact that she was drinking red wine to the equation and I knew she was emotional tonight.

Being her best friend, I was pretty confident that I could lift her spirits with a good ol' fashioned girls night in. I had junk food, we had liquor, we would watch some sappy romantic comedy and fall asleep drunk. We would wake up the next morning, eat eggs and drink Bloody Marys for our hangover and all would be fine. But tonight… that wasn't going to be the case.

I got to Santana's building and kissed Puck goodbye before pulling out my keys to let myself in. I glanced at my watch and saw it was a little after 11pm. There was a good chance she would be asleep, but she would be lying in the living room on the couch, so I could easily convince her to sit up and talk for a little while. I wanted to find out why she was crying.

As I got off the elevator I noticed a trail of blood in the hallway…gross. I was walking to San's door when I realized the trail of blood led right there, and as I got closer, I saw that her door was wide open. I gasped and dropped my dessert, pulling my phone out and calling Puck.

"Get up here now!" I screamed in to the phone. "Hurry up!"

I threw my phone in my purse and ran in the condo.

"S-ssssannnnn?! Santana?!" I yell out as I walk in the kitchen and see her butcher knife on the counter.

"Oh my god!" I whisper out, fearing the absolute worst. Santana came running out her bedroom. She looked a mess, there was blood on her sweatshirt and her legs, her face was extremely pale, and her eyes were bloodshot red.

I met her half way and grabbed her tight in a hug. "Are you ok?" I ask her frantically as I pull back and look her over. "Santana say something, please." She simply shook her head and collapsed in my embrace, sobbing hysterically. I lowered us to the ground and pulled her into my lap and held her tight, peppering kisses to the top of her head.

"It's ok, San." I coo in her ear as she clutches to me and shakes with sobs.

Puck comes running in the condo and pulls out his pocketknife. "Who's ass do I have to slice up tonight?!" He growled out with fire dancing in his eyes. When Puck gets that look of rage things get bad, really bad.

"I don't know what's wrong with her." I tell him frantically. "I saw the blood leading to her door and she has blood all over her sweatshirt, the door was open…" I ramble out.

Puck rushes to us and bends down and hugs us both. "Santana did someone break in?" He asks her while standing back up and checking the window in her living room and the balcony door.

"San, you're scaring me babe…say something." I coax once more when she finally calms down. "Why are you bleeding?"

"It's not my blood." She says softly as tears keep cascading out of her eyes. "It's Brittany's."

"Pierce?" I ask slowly.

She nods and stands up shakily. "Brittany showed up here, beaten and bloody. She won't talk, she won't say anything, something's wrong, Quinn. I think she was attacked and raped." She rushes out quickly. My heart skips a beat, and I instantly feel flushed and nauseous. I try to stand up but I feel like an anchor is holding me the ground. I close my eyes tightly and shake my head. Who the hell would attack Brittany, this just doesn't make sense to me.

I stand up and hug her once more. "Calm down, sweetie, please. You've been drinking, so you need to relax and stay calm." I rubbed her back as she leaned into me and relaxed more. "I don't want you to have a panic attack or anything like that."

"I'm going to move my car, I'm double parked." Puck said. "Keep the door locked and keep the windows closed. I will be right back up."

We both nodded that we understood. "Where is she, San?"

"She's in my bedroom, I uh, I cleaned her up first. I-I gave her a bath, cleaned her cuts, and wrapped her ankle, but she looks pretty bad still." She whispered out. "She has a huge bruise on her face, and her eye is almost swollen shut."

"Wait…you gave her a bath?!" I ask her making sure I heard right. "If she was really raped, you just cleaned most of the evidence up, babe, you know the semen mainly. Did you take any pictures first at least?"

"Fuck!" She said loudly. "I wasn't thinking, damn it." She facepalmed herself.

"You still have the clothes right?" I ask her.

She nods, "Yeah, they're in the bathroom on the floor, I wanted to keep them for the police, they are bloody and may have semen and DNA residue on them still… If she ever lets me call."

I kissed her softly on the forehead. "We will figure this out. Come on."

"Come on what?" She asked while raising an eyebrow.

"I want to see Brittany." I tell her.

Santana shakes her head. "She's really shook up right now Q, wait until the morning."

"San…"

"Quinn no. I have her trust right now and I don't want to do anything to break that or mess that up." Santana pleads. "Just wait until the morning and I can at least see if she is talking more then."

"Santana I want to see Brittany and check on her." I demand.

"I really dont think it's a good idea Quinn."

We glare at each other for several minutes before she finally sighs and caves in.

"Fine, but if you fuck this up Q and send her spiraling into some freak out I will reincarnate Snixx on your ass tonight, that's a promise." She threatens to me, to which I roll my eyes at. "Brace yourself, Q." She says before walking towards the bedroom.

I walk in slowly after her and see Brittany lying in bed and instantly cover my mouth with my hand. As much I wanted to cry, I couldn't break in front of San, she wasn't going to be able to stay strong through this. If it were anyone else, she would be able to remain stone face right now and mask her emotions, but this was Brittany, her kryptonite. Brittany has always been the one to break Santana down layer by layer and bring out her sensitive side.

I walk over and sit gently on the bed next to her. Her eyes pop open when she feels me sit down and I notice her body tense, she goes to move but Santana speaks up.

"It's ok Brit, I'm right here." Santana tells her quietly. Brittany looked over at Santana then back to me and relaxed.

I smile softly at her. "Hey Brit, it's me Quinnie" She just stares at my mouth, avoiding eye contact.

"Do you need anything?" I ask her. She shakes her head no softly. "You need to see a doctor for your face, that's a pretty bad bruise."

Her eyes widen and she tries to get up, Santana runs over to her.

"We won't take you to a doctor Brit, ok?" Santana glances over at me and shrugs.

I nod, "It's ok Brit, what about Blaine? He's a doctor; can he come take a look at you tomorrow? You won't have to leave the condo." She looks over at Santana, who nods at her and smiles weakly.

She then looks back to me and nods.

"Ok, I will call him in the morning. Why don't you try to get a little sleep?" I tell her while slowly reaching my hand out and stroking her hair. She tenses but relaxes quickly.

I grab Santana by the hand and leave the room, closing the door. I lead her to the guest room and have her sit on the bed. "You need to get cleaned up, San." I say softly while turning on the shower in the bathroom attached to the room. I grab some clothes out of that closet. Yes, Santana has clothes in every room. One of her extra bedrooms is actually a walk in closet she created.

"Q, I need to go sit with Brit." She protests but I shake my head and gently push her in the bathroom. "Get cleaned up, babe." I knew she actually got in when I heard the shower door close.

I go to the living room and sit down on the sectional, shaking. I take a few deep breaths to steady myself when I feel Puck wrap his arms around me. I exhale and lean into his embrace.

"I'm staying with you girls tonight; I don't trust whatever asshole attacked Brittany." Puck rasped out. "Stay with San in the guestroom, I will sleep out here on the couch in case they followed her here."

I nod as he leans down and kisses me softly while grazing his thumb over my cheek. "You ok?" He asks softly.

I shrug because I really don't know how I'm doing or feeling. It really isn't even important to me. Santana and Brittany's well being are the most important to me right now. Santana has been drinking and she is a mess when she drinks, she's gets super emotional and irrational. And Brittany...I don't know even know where to begin.

"It's late, baby, I'm going to try to get Santana settled down and then go to bed." I stand up and lean down kissing him one last time.

I head back to the guest room and change into a pair of sweats and a t-shirt from her closet and sit on the bed waiting for San to come out of the bathroom. She comes out slowly, looking completely defeated. "Let's get some rest and sort this out in the morning."

She nods. "I guess that's the best thing to do."

"Puck is staying the night out on the couch in the living room, I will take the guest room and you can sleep with Brit in your bed." I plan out strategically.

"I don't think I should sleep with Brit in the bed, Q. I don't want to freak her out and make her any more uncomfortable than she already is." Santana replies.

"Good point," I tell her as we walk back to her bedroom to check on Brittany. "Well, you can sleep with me in the guestroom, won't be the first time we had to share a bed." I shrug.

"I'm going to sleep on the chaise, so I can watch her in case she gets sick or something." She whispers once we walk in the room. We both glance over at Brittany, who appears to be asleep.

"Ok, that sounds good." I agree. "Well, I'll be right next door in the guestroom if you need me, ok?"

"W-will you stay in here with me, Q?" She asks sheepishly.

I smile sadly at her. "Of course I will, babe."

She grabs some extra pillows from the closet and a blanket and sits on the chaise. I prop up the pillows underneath our heads and toss the blanket over us as Santana snuggles close.

"It'll be ok San." I coo in her ear as I wrap my arm around her and hold her tight. I don't know if I was trying to convince Santana or myself more. I wait until she eventually falls asleep before I finally close my eyes allow myself the same luxury.

**PUCK'S POV**

After Quinn goes to check on Santana and Brittany, I go to Santana's bar and pour myself a double shot of scotch straight up. I knock it back quickly and clench my eyes tightly closed as the warm liquid coats and burns my throat as it slowly slides down.

I kick my shoes off and sit on the couch. I've been reformed for quite a while, when I first moved to New York, I got in with the wrong crowd, and did quite a few things I'm not too proud of. But now, 5 years later, I'm on the right path. Santana took a gamble on me and hired me as her restaurant manager so I could earn some legal money. I saved up and 2 years ago I started a photography company. I've been able to provide a great life for Quinn and myself. We started dating again a few years back, and honestly she is a big part of the reason I want to be a better man. I even want to ask her to marry me before the year is up.

I still have my connections to the underworld though and I want to make sure whoever attacked Brittany gets what they deserve. I pull out my phone and send out a quick text.

I got a job for you, hit me back ASAP – P

I then go check on the girls. I walk slowly in the room and notice all the girls are sleep. I see Quinn holding Santana while they sleep on the chaise in San's room. I glance over at Brittany and see just how beat up she really is and it pisses me off. I feel anger surge through my body. I go to the bathroom and notice her soiled clothes, so I quickly put on some plastic gloves from the shelf and grab a bag out of the closet. The clothes are pretty torn already so I rip off some pieces and toss the clothes in there, so I can get tests run on them and get fingerprints and hopefully DNA samples. I know the girls will probably have Brit call the police but I know that I can find the douche quicker than they will. I then clean up the bathroom so the girls don't have to deal with the mess in the morning.

As I'm leaving the bathroom, I see Santana stir in her sleep and Quinn instinctively move her arm and hold her tighter. I walk up to Quinn and kiss her on the forehead before l leave the room. I have a foot out of the door when she calls my name.

"Puck?"

"Yeah, babe?" I whisper.

"What are you doing?" She whispers while looking down at Santana briefly. I'm assuming to make sure she doesn't wake up.

"I just came to check on you girls and make sure the windows were locked." I tell her. "You ok?"

She nods slightly while reaching her hand up and wiping tears from Santana's face gently. "Yeah, I'm ok."

We lock eyes and she sighs softly. "Please don't do anything stupid, Noah." She pleads.

"Good night, baby." I tell her softly before leaving the room.

**QUINN'S POV**

After Puck left the room I couldn't get back to sleep. I knew he was going to use his street connections for anything, but nothing good. I mean, they are street connections after all. Another reason I couldn't get back to sleep was because San was crying in her sleep. I didn't know if she was having a nightmare or what. I felt her tears on my neck, where she had her face nestled. I gently wiped them away before she started to shake a little. I didn't know what else to do beside hold her tighter and rub her back.

Somehow, I drifted back to sleep and the next time I woke up was from hearing Santana wheezing slightly. I quickly opened my eyes realizing she was struggling to breathe. She points to the bathroom as she gasps again.

"Deep breaths San, ok…deep breaths." I jump up and run to the bathroom and grab her cup of water.

She sits up and starts to panic slightly I take her hand and hold it up to my chest and take deep breaths. "Follow my breathing." I tell her lowly trying to remain calm. I feel her body relax more into mine as her breathing slows down and evens out. I sigh out in relief while kissing the back of her head. "You ok?"

She nods and quickly wipes her eyes while taking a few more deep breaths. "Thanks," she whispers out shakily while grabbing her chest.

"Is your chest tight?" I ask her.

"Yeah."

"Ok, I think you just had a panic attack San, try to go back to sleep and see if it helps." She quickly does as I toss the cover back on us. "I got you San, ok? I'm going to help you look after Brittany, so you don't have to do this alone."

**SANTANA'S POV**

I woke up the second time because I had to pee. I gently removed Quinn's hand from my waist and go quietly to the bathroom. When I come out, I go to lay back down when I hear some light groaning.

I look over at Quinn, who seems to be sleeping peacefully, so I walk to the bed to check on Brittany. Her face looks a thousand times worse. "Brit, what hurts?" I ask her softly, but quickly realize that's a stupid question, her whole damn body probably hurts. "Does your face hurt?"

She slowly opens her eyes, well her eye, the right one is now swollen shut. But the left one is still that beautiful deep ocean blue but now it's laced with red and full of pain. She nods.

"I'll get you some ice, ok, be right back." I quickly head to the kitchen and make another ice pack for her ankle, and I make one for her face.

Puck is up cooking breakfast with headphones on. "Hey." He says while pulling out the ear buds and giving me a big hug. "How did you sleep?"

I shrug at him. "I had a fuckin panic attack, so not good, I guess. I thought you had to work this morning?"

"I do." He replies while putting all the food on a platter. "I'm leaving now, actually, I just wanted to cook you ladies some breakfast first."

"Thanks." I tell him. "I uh, need to get this to Brit."

He nods. "Tell Q I will be back later." He says while putting on his jacket and leaving.

I trot back to the room and am startled when I see Brittany sitting up.

"Bathroom, please." She whispers hoarsely.

"You need help?" I ask her making sure I understand.

She nods quickly. "Ok, ummm I will carry you so you don't put pressure on your foot until Blaine takes a look at it."

"Ok." She whispers out again. My stomach flips in excitement that she is actually talking now. I lift her up slowly, not entirely trusting my own strength this morning. I actually struggle to carry her to the bathroom but we make it.

I wait outside the door to give her privacy and I don't reenter until she calls my name softly. I try to pick her back up, but my arms just wouldn't allow me to.

"I can hop back." She says softly.

"I'm sorry Brit; I guess I'm just tired." I apologize. "Here lean on me at least."

"Ok." She wraps an arm around my neck and hops back as I brace her to the bed. I lift her legs up and rewrap her ankle, propping it back on the pillow.

"Do you want to lie back down?" I ask her.

"No thanks." She replies softly again. Her voice still sounds raspy and painful.

I'm a pillow person; so there are practically millions on my bed. I prop a bunch up behind her back so she can sit up at least. I then gently place the other ice pack on her eye. She jumps back immediately. "It hurts." She pouts.

She pouted! That same Brittany pout I have never been able to resist. I smile softly at her. "I know but you need to try to get the swelling down. The ice will take some of the heat out of the bruise."

She sighs and nods reluctantly as I lift it back up to her face. She winces but places her hand on mine to hold it close. Her touch once again electrifies my skin and I keep my hand underneath her's for a moment, before slowly moving it so she can hold the ice pack herself.

"Are you hungry?" I ask her. "Puck cooked breakfast." She shakes her head no, but I know Brit…that girl eats. "You can eat, Brit, he made enough for a small army." I tell her. "I will get you a small plate ok? Try to eat a little."

"Sit down and rest San, I'll get it." Quinn says while standing up and coming over by us. "Morning Brit." She says with a smile.

"Morning." Brittany whispers out.

Quinn then turns to me. "How's your chest?"

"Ok." I say slowly.

Quinn looks me over. "Your eyes are glazed over, lay down Santana. I will grab breakfast for both of you." She says sternly.

I reluctantly go sit back on the chaise. "Puck said he would be back later." I tell her.

"Ok," She replies simply. "Brit I will get you some tea for your throat ok?"

"Thanks." Brittany rasps out softly.

I smile at her, happy that she is talking to us. I mean, it's just small phrases but still it's a victory.

Blaine shows up around 11am to take a look at Brittany. After a quick hushed chat with Quinn and me in the living room, I take him back to the bedroom where she is sitting up staring out of the window. I turn to leave to give them privacy, but I really want to stay and just hold Brit's hand; she looks mortified and uncomfortable. It's not that I don't trust Blaine, he's a great doctor. I mean he works at one of the top hospitals in the city, but I would just feel better about the situation if Brit were to go to the hospital but she won't budge. I kind of think she is scared to leave the condo. As I'm walking out I hear a small voice.

"Santana, will you stay?"

I turn around and smile at her. "Of course I will, Brit." I walk over to the side of the bed and stand next to it. I reach out my hand slowly to hold hers and grin like a kid in the candy story when she meets my hand halfway and holds it tightly.

Blaine checks out her ankle, determining it's just a bad sprain, and he checks her face with the bruise. He recleans the cuts and scrapes on her chest, arms, and legs. I high five myself in my head when he says I did a good job with the cuts, but then again my dad is a doctor so it's natural for me to do a good job.

"Ok, Brittany, I will be as gentle as possible during the exam ok?" Blaine says calmly.

Brittany looks up at me and I nod and smile at her while squeezing her hand to let her know it's ok.

As Blaine opens her legs and reaches for the waistband of her pants, Brittany squeezes the shit out of my hand. I look down at her and see her eyes are closed super tight and she is shaking.

"Hey Blaine," I speak up. "Why don't you let me strip Brit down first and then call you back in when she is more comfortable?"

He stands up and nods. "That's a great idea. I will step outside the door."

When he leaves the room, I kneel next to the bed to look at her. "Brit, I know this is scary and this sucks ass but I'm right here with you. Like I told you last night, I promise not to let anyone hurt you again, you are safe here with me." I pause for a second. "Look at me, Brit." She slowly turns her head and opens her eye to look at me. "Do you trust me?"

"Yes." She whispers out.

I smile at her. "Good." I let go of her hand and go to undress her. "I'm just going to slide down your pants and underwear ok, then I'm going to put this towel over you so you are still kind of covered."

I quickly do so and go back to hold her hand as Blaine begins to examine her.

"Santana?" He says with a frown. "When you cleaned Brittany up you literally meant you cleaned her up, huh? You cleaned the evidence up. There is no way to tell who raped her now."

"I know, I realized that last night when Quinn said something." I look down at Brittany. "I'm sorry, Brit." I whisper out. "Can you just make sure she isn't like torn too badly in there or anything?"

Blaine nods. "Yeah, I can do that." He then looks to Brittany. "This is a routine rape exam ok?"

"Ok." Brittany whispers out as Blaine begins to examine her. She has tears leaking out her eyes, I don't know if it's from pain or because I fucked up and made her take a bath last night.

Later that afternoon, I'm in the living room going over resumes for a new chef position for _Snixx_ to keep my mind from wandering and driving me straight to the mental ward, when Quinn walks in with a detective.

"Q." I say warningly.

"She needs to report this, Santana. Where is she?" Quinn asked gently.

"She's asleep in the room." I inform her. "Maybe we can do this another day."

"No, she needs to do this right away while it's fresh in her memory." Quinn tries to explain.

I sigh loudly and shake my head. "This is wrong Quinn and you know it."

"Santana..."

"Let me go wake her up and let her know what's going on." I walk back in the room and to my surprise she is awake. "Hey." I say softly.

"Hey." She whispers back.

"There is a detective here, he wants to talk to you about what happened, Brit." I tell her.

She shakes her head no as tears start to fall down her face, causing my heart to shatter. Damn Quinn, this won't end well. I can already tell now. "Come on, Brit, we have to catch the asshole that did this to you." I tell while sitting on the bed next to her.

"I know who did it." She says softly.

"What?" I ask while walking closer.

"I can't tell…he will find me and kill me." She says through a sob.

"Brit…" I whisper out.

Quinn comes in the room with the detective.

"Damn Q, you couldn't wait for me to come get you." I hiss out while glaring at her.

"Miss Pierce?" The stocky guy booms out.

Brittany hesitantly nods and wipes her tears away.

Quinn and I step out of the room, well Brittany made us leave. She said she didn't want us to hear so we sat in the living room and waited. The detective came out 45 minutes later with Brittany's clothes in a bag, thanking us for our cooperation and left us a card saying he would be in touch.

I head back to the room to check on Brittany when Puck busts through the door causing me to turn around and stop.

"Brittany is in a shit load of trouble." He says softly to me and Quinn. "This is going to get bad."

"What do you mean?" I quickly ask.

"I took some of her clothes and had a buddy of mine run fingerprints on them and you won't believe whose prints we found."

I close my eyes tightly and sigh...so much for small victories

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**I usually ask questions at the end of each chapter to give you something to think about but I'm going to just let you guys pick out what stuck out the most in this chapter.**

**Quinn bringing the detective with out Brittany's consent to make her report the attack will be talked about in the next chapter during a heated discussion between her and Santana.**

**Also Brittany POV is next chapter...find out what she was thinking about as Santana cleaned her up, during the rape exam, and how she felt about being forced to talk to the detective.**

**I KNOW YOU HAVE THOUGHTS! LETS HEAR THEM...LEAVE A REVIEW. LOL**


	4. Chapter 4 - It's Not Your Fault

**A few people have speculated who attacked Brittany via Reviews and PMed...I love reading your theories and guesses. Why do so many people assume its Sam? Lol - Has he attacked Brittany is other Fics or something?**

**Some of you are asking if the story is a repost and the answer is yes. As I said in the first chapter I started the story earlier this year and just never finished so I eventually just deleted it. However, recently I had quite a few people asking what happened to the story so I decided to rewrite it and change it up quite a bit. So if it seems familiar that's why...but forget everything you read because this version is going to be very very different, so hopefully it doesn't confuse anyone who read it the first time around. :)**

**Thanks for all the reviews/pms/favorites/follows etc.**

**Its Friday and the sun is shining, so Im in a good mood = early update :)**

* * *

**SANTANA POV**

After Puck tells us whose prints and DNA were found on some of Brittany's clothes, I go numb, my legs give out and sink slowly to the ground. Quinn runs to my side but I refuse her help. Not only am I mad at her for bringing the detective over, but I just don't want to be touched. I have to be left alone for my brain to process this. I have to stay strong for Brittany, and now, knowing who possibly attacked her…she really needs my strength.

"Are you sure Puck?" I ask him.

He exhales and nods. "Positive, I had Marco run the prints, you know he doesn't make mistakes."

"What's the big deal?" Quinn asked hesitantly.

As much I would love to sit and chat with Quinn and Puck on the severity of the situation my thoughts are consumed with how Brit is doing. I take a few deep breaths and stand up, steadying myself.

"I n-need to check on Brit." I state before I run to the kitchen and grab a bottle of water, and two more ice packs and head back to my bedroom.

I knock lightly on the door before I walk in. "Hey Brit?" I call out as I step inside and close the door behind me.

She is lying on her side with her eyes closed. By the way she is shaking slightly I know she is crying. Damn. I swear I'm kicking Quinn's ass later. I sigh to myself while cursing Quinn's pushy ass out in my head over and over.

"You should lie on your other side Brit, so you aren't putting pressure on your bruise." I say softly. "It'll heal faster that way."

She nods and slowly turns over on her other side as she wipes her tears away.

"Can I sit with you?" I ask her. When she nods I walk over and sit on the edge of the bed. "I have more ice for your ankle." I tell her while I quickly replace it with the old pack on her ankle. "I have some ice for your eye too, can I put it on?"

She nods and sits up slowly; I reposition the pillows so she's comfortable.

"Ready?" I place the ice pack gently on her eye; my stomach flips as she winces from pain. She places her hand on my hand again to hold it.

"Do you have a headache or anything?"

"A little one." She whispers out while closing her eyes and leaning back.

"Ok, I'll grab some Tylenol for you." I go the bathroom and come back with two low dose pills. I hand her the bottle of water and watch her take the pills. "I'll run and get the prescriptions filled that Blaine left for you in a few minutes."

"Please don't leave." She says just above a whisper.

"Uh, I'll be right back, Brit, there's a pharmacy just a few blocks away."

She shakes her head as tears start to stream out again; I feel my heart break for the thousandth time since last night.

"Ok, I won't leave you." I whisper to her. "I'll have Quinn go, ok?"

We sit in silence for a while; she was holding the ice pack to her eye as she looked out the window, while I played with my hands. I didn't want to stare at her and make her think I was looking at her bruise or black eye, so I just kept my gaze downward.

"Brit, I'm sorry Quinn brought the detective in without asking your permission first." I started while looking up at her. She turned and looked at me and nodded.

"It's not your fault." She says softly with a shrug.

"Yeah but I could have tried harder to stop her." I say while shaking my head. "I let you down."

"No, you didn't." She tells me as she locks eyes with me again. The look in her eye tells me she isn't mad at me, so I sigh in relief.

"Are you okay after talking with the detective?"

She shrugs again. "Please don't make me talk about it again."

I shake my head quickly. "You can tell me what happened when you're completely ready, Brit." I reassure her. "I would never force you to relive it."

"Thanks." She replied as a few tears fell from her eye.

I lifted my hand slowly and wiped the tears away, grazing her cheek softly. We lock eyes and I feel a surge of energy going through my body. I quickly retract my hand and run it through my hair.

"Do you want to watch a little TV and try to take a nap?" I ask her while standing up to grab the remote control. "It may help your headache go away a little faster."

"Ok."

I turn on the TV and hand her the remote. I go to use the bathroom and quickly splash water on my face. I take a look at myself and realize just how tired I look. My eyes are low and droopy, and don't get me started on the bags underneath them. "I can do this." I tell myself. I take a few deep breaths and go back out to the bedroom.

"I'll let you rest Brit." I tell her as I head out the door.

"Wait…" She says in a louder voice. Even though she was talking in her normal voice it honestly almost scares me since she's been whispering since she got here.

I turn around. "You ok?" I ask quickly.

"Yeah, c-can you stay with me and watch TV?" She says shyly.

I smile and close the door to the bedroom. "Sure Brit." I sit on the chaise, which is located at the foot of the bed. I really wanted to sit next to her on the bed, but I want to give her space. So I respect her boundaries and sit on my chaise, it's comfy anyways so not a big deal.

She turns on some random movie and we watch it in silence. I glance over at her to say something but I see she has fallen asleep. I'm happy she still trusts me enough that she wants me close to her even when she's sleep. I watch her sleep until my eyes involuntarily close and I fall asleep myself.

**BRITTANY POV**

When I woke up from my nap, I instantly panicked. I was in a strange bed, in an unfamiliar bedroom. I closed my eyes tightly hoping it was a dream and opened them slowly….nope not a dream. I sit up slowly and look around the room. I see Santana sleep on a big chair thing in her room at the foot of the bed and I relax. She looks so peaceful, but she always did look effortlessly beautiful. I've always told her she didn't need to wear all that makeup because she has a natural beauty, but she loved to get all glammed up. Santana loves to sleep, so when we were dating in high school, I always woke up before her and I would just stare at her and watch her. I remember that I'm safe at Santana's house and lay back down letting out a shaky breath.

My mind starts to wander and I go over the past 24 hours in my head.

_I woke up in an alley, and when I say woke up, I mean regained consciousness. I blink slowly to adjust my vision to bright sunlight. I can go see out of one eye so I touch my other eye and immediately regret it. It's almost swollen shut and hurts; actually that whole side of my face hurts. I sit up and get dizzy. I realize I'm alone and free so my first thought was to run. I look around and pick up my small purse, which was thrown in the corner by a garbage can. I try to stand but my ankle gives out, so I crawl over to my bag and look in the secret pocket hidden in the seams, sighing in relief that my phone is still there and I turn it on, hoping there is battery power left._

_I hear voices from one end of the alley and I get a burst of adrenaline and stand up. My ankle buckles under my body weight, but I stand through the pain. I don't care how much it hurts; I just know that I need to get out of here and fast. Even though my ankle was throbbing and hurt like hell I ran until I couldn't run anymore, then I began to walk. I see a Starbucks and quickly go inside. I ignore the looks and stares from the other people in the shop and hobble to the bathroom. I quickly lock the door and sink to the ground crying. I must have been in there for hours; several people came and knocked on the door, and each time I would tense up and hold my breath until I heard the footsteps fade away. I couldn't be too sure who was on the other side of the door._

_My phone went off with an email and I instantly tensed up. What if they were looking for me? What if they saw me come in here? I opened the email and saw it was another monthly update from Rachel. While her updates are usually disturbing, since she lists everyone's current phone number and address which I'm positive Puck and Santana are pissed about, I really appreciated the email today._

_I scroll through the list on contacts and when I see Santana's address, I put it in my navigation app on my phone to get directions. I stand back up and wince because my ankle is so tender but I power through the pain and run out of Starbucks. It's getting dark out so I'm even more nervous now. They could be anywhere, every sound scares me, my nerves are completely shot. My GPS says she lives about 20 minutes away on foot, so I take off running again. I stop a few times to throw up, mainly from nerves._

_I get to her building and stand out front, wondering if I'm making a huge mistake. I haven't talk to Santana in years. I've seen pictures of her on Facebook and Instagram, but that's about it. What if she isn't even home? What if she doesn't want to see me and slams the door in my face? No…she wouldn't do that. What if she has a date over? A car comes speeding down the street, blaring on its horn and I tense up and get scared and run in the lobby._

_I try to enter the building, but it's a locked lobby. My heart shatters. I pull on the door, begging for it magically open, but it doesn't. I then go to the doorbell section of the lobby and see Lopez, so I shakily press the button. I wait for a few minutes but there was no answer. "Please be here, San." I whisper out while pressing the button again as tears streamed from my eyes. Still no answer. I hit the door out of frustration and kick it. When I kick the door, I end up slicing my leg on something sharp. "Please San." I cry out softly. "I need you." I try the buzzer once more praying she answers._

_A man walks in the lobby and pulls out his keys, I'm assuming he lives here. Once he unlocks the door he holds the door open for me. I quietly say thank you and run up the steps to Santana's floor. By the time I get to the 5th floor, my ankle feels like it's going to fall off. I limp up to her door and knock softly. I hear her voice saying she's coming and I tense up. She's really here. All the running I've done today has taken its toll on my body and I have no energy and it's hard to even keep my head up at this point._

_She opens the door and I softly say her name. She says my name back and I get embarrassed and I try to run, but my ankle said that's enough and I collapse to the ground. She runs over to me and I tense up. I don't know why I'm scared around her. I know in my heart she would never hurt me but I just can't trust anyone right now._

_She wasn't aggressive or anything, she was still sweet gentle Santana. She didn't question why I was here, she just simply offered to clean me up. I was hesitant at first, but I saw nothing but concern and genuine care in her eyes, so I allowed her to pick me up. I tensed initially but I had to keep telling myself that it was just San and she wouldn't hurt me._

_I glanced over at her again once again and sigh. I really want to tell her everything but I don't want her to look at me differently. I know she wouldn't judge me but I'm just not ready to tell her yet. She starts to stir in her sleep and I smile because she still scrunches up her nose in her sleep and buries her face deep in the pillow afterwards, before relaxing again. God, she's still so beautiful._

_I felt safe and secure in her house until there is a knock on the door…well more like a pounding and someone yelling. My first thought is that they found me. I instantly tense up as tears leak out of my eyes uncontrollably. Santana leaves the room to go see what's going on. I roll off her bed and crawl to a small space between her bed and dresser. I start to shake because they can't find me….they just can't._

_I hear the voice scream out one last time while banging on the door and my stomach flips, causing me to throw up on myself. Great. Santana comes back shortly, telling me it was just her neighbor. I was so embarrassed that I threw up on myself but she didn't think anything of it. She made it seem like it wasn't a big deal. She pulled out a t-shirt that I gave her senior year and it literally made my day. I couldn't believe she still had it after all these years. I flicker my eyes up to her and lock eyes with her's momentarily, before looking back down. I feel something everytime I look in her eyes, something I shouldn't be feeling right now, so I avoid looking in her eyes. There is no way Santana still has feelings for me, it's been years. And now I look like a monster with the bruise on my face._

_My mind then goes to the rape exam, which was the most humiliating and uncomfortable experience ever. Luckily San held my hand the entire time and whispered comforting words to me to make the experience pass by rather quickly._

I'm pulled from my thoughts by Santana calling my name softly and I blink a few times to focus myself.

"Brit…"

I look up and try to smile. "Sorry."

"It's ok. Are you hungry?" She asks softly.

"Kinda." I tell her truthfully.

"Ok, I'll cook us a little something." She says with a small smile. "Gotta taste for anything?"

I shrug. "It doesn't matter."

"Ok, I'll surprise you then." She winks and leaves the room.

I smile softly at the door when she leaves.

**SANTANA POV**

I'm in the kitchen making tacos, I know its simple but Brit has always loved when I made them for her when we dated, especially when I made my homemade guacamole. I want her to feel as relaxed and normal as possible, so that's what I decide to cook. Quinn comes in the door with a suitcase. I quickly glance at her and keep chopping up lettuce.

"What's with the suitcase?" I ask her.

"I'm going to stay here for a few days to help you out with Brit." She replies while walking towards the guestroom. She comes back a few minutes later. "Need help with dinner?" She asks.

Without looking up at her, I simply reply. "Nope, they're just tacos, Quinn. I think I can handle it."

"Ok San, let's get to it. What's the problem?" She asks while pulling out a cutting board and dicing up a tomato.

"Nothing." I reply while pouring myself a shot of tequila, but before I can drink it she snatches it out of my hand. "What the fuck?!" I hiss out at her.

"No, tell me what the problem is, don't wait until you have liquid courage." She says while pouring out the shot.

"Ok, first of all you owe $20 for that shot you just wasted." I snap at her.

She reaches in her pocket and pulls out a $50 and slams it on the counter. "Save yourself the trouble of pouring more shots for me to waste." She replies curtly.

"Don't insult me with your money." I tell her. "I'm not in the mood for your smart ass ways tonight."

"You're the one being a bitch right now." She replies simply.

"Ok Q, my problem is that you went behind Brittany's back and brought in a fucking detective." I say while slamming down the knife. "You didn't even ask my opinion or ask Brittany if she wanted to."

"You aren't her girlfriend anymore, San; I don't have to run anything by you." Quinn snaps.

"I know I'm not her girlfriend, Fabray, You still should have ran it by Brittany, there is no getting around that. Keep in mind she came to me for help, not you." I tell her. "Did you even think if she was ready to talk instead of bombarding her? I don't need your help with her."

"You think you can do this alone?" Quinn asked with a laugh. "Santana, come on."

"Fuck you, Q." I hiss out while glaring at her.

Quinn sighs. "San…"

"Just leave me alone, Quinn." I say softly while sniffling refusing to cry right now while picking up the knife and slicing an avocado to start making guacamole.

"Santana, please just stop for a minute." Quinn says softly, while reaching over and taking the knife out of my hand.

I roll my eyes and look up at her. "What?"

"We both are high on emotion right now. I'm sorry, ok?" She says sincerely. "Come on San, look at me."

I lift my gaze to her and roll my eyes as a tear comes out. "I can't fight with you right now, Q….ok? It's too much going on right now and I just can't. So let's just drop it."

She walks over and hugs me. "I'm sorry San, really." She lets me go and picks up the knife and starts dicing up the tomato again. "I can be pushy, you know that."

I wipe my eyes and nod. "Reign in control freak Quinn and allow Brittany to lead on this. She is fragile, we don't know what happened and pushing her to talk may not be the best thing for her."

Quinn sighs. "I know, I just….I want to catch the jerk that hurt her, San."

"I do too, you know that." I tell her. "But I also want to make sure Brit is comfortable and stuff, you know. I don't want to add any extra stress to her." I sigh. "You need to apologize to her as well, Quinn."

"To who, Brittany?" She asks.

"Who the hell else is here, Quinn?" I say while shaking my head. "Yes Brittany, what you did was fucked up."

"I know, I'll talk to her after dinner." She says softly.

"Who says I'm feeding you?" I ask her a smirk.

She rolls her eyes while pouring me another shot of tequila and pouring herself one as well. She holds up the shot glass. "Truce?"

I clink my shot glass with hers and nod. "Truce." I confirm

We finish cooking the rest of the meal in silence. Quinn makes herself a plate and goes to the living room while I fix Brittany a plate and take it to her.

"Hey Brit, I made tacos. I hope that's okay." I tell her as I walk in the room.

She nods. "Tacos are fine." She replies with a small smile.

I set the plate down and run to the living room and grab a lap TV tray and a Sprite from the fridge. I place the tray over her lap and set the food on it.

She shakes her head. "I can't eat in your bed."

I laugh softly. "It's fine, Brit, don't worry about it."

"Are you going to eat with me?" She asks.

"Do you want me to?" I ask her sheepishly.

She nods. "I don't really want to be alone." She says sadly.

"Ok, well let me grab my plate." I run to the kitchen and grab my plate before settling on the chaise.

We eat in a comfortable silence while watching an infomercial. We both must have been starving because we ate our food quickly. I looked down at my watch at saw it was already 9pm.

"Want any more?" I ask her while standing up and grabbing her plate.

"No thanks." She says politely. "They were really good though, you are still a really good cook."

"Thanks, ba-." Shit, I almost called her baby. "Thanks, Brit." I spit out quickly and rush out of the room.

"Can I take a shower?"

"Sure Brit, do you think you can stand for a shower?" I ask her.

"Oh yeah." She says sadly.

"Um, I can help you if you want. I don't mind." I tell her.

"Ok."

I smile at her. "Let me turn on the shower to get ready." I go to the bathroom and turn on the shower and grab some towels to get ready. Once everything is set, I come back to the room andI attempt to lift her, but she stops me.

"You don't have to lift me. I can hop again." She says with a smile.

"You sure, Brit?" I ask her concerned. The last thing I want is for her to hurt herself again or think she is being a burden to me.

"Yeah, it keeps my other leg strong." She replies.

"Ok, well lean into me at least." I tell her as she swings her legs off the bed. I help her stand up and wrap my arm around her waist to brace her. She puts her arm around my neck and I shudder as her touch gives me goose bumps. "R-ready?"

She nods and smiles. Once we get to the bathroom, she sits down on the toilet and starts to take her top off.

"Here let me help you so you don't bump your face Brit." I say softly while guiding the shirt carefully over her face. "I think if you hold on to the shower rails you should be ok in the shower." I tell her. "If you need anything else just holler for me."

"You aren't going to help me shower?" She asked quietly.

"I-I can Brit, I'm sorry, I thought you would want to do it alone." I tell her softly.

"You can go if you want." She says while looking down and playing with the hem of the sweatpants. She starts to sniffle. So I kneel in front of her.

"Hey, look at me, Brittany." I say while hesitantly resting my hands on her knees. Being this close and touchy with her is a gamble but I risk it, and to my surprise she doesn't jump or tense. She slowly lifts her head and I see a tear sliding down her face.

"Why are you crying?" I ask her. "I can help you shower if you need help. I swear I don't mind."

"Thanks." She whispers out.

"You're welcome, B." I carefully wipe her tear away. "Let's get you undressed completely, unless you want to shower with sweats on." I tease to lighten the mood. She laughs softly so I smile, happy it worked.

I lift her in the shower. "Ok, stand primarily on the good ankle Brit, and hold on tight to the shower rails on the wall." I tell her. I take off my t-shirt so I'm just in my tank top. I wrap my arm around her waist securely while I grab my loofah and squeeze body wash in it and run it over her back and arms. I go gently over her legs so I don't irritate the huge cut on her leg or hit her ankle too roughly.

"You're getting all wet." She say softly.

I look at my shirt and laugh. "Yes, I guess so. That's ok, I'll shower after I get you settled back in bed."

"You don't have to do all this." She says. "You can kick me out if you want. I can go somewhere else."

I stop washing her legs and stand up. "Why would you say that, Brit?"

"You shouldn't have to take care of me like this." She whispers.

"I know I don't have to, but I want to, Brit. We are still friends, right?" I ask her while raising my eyebrow.

She nods.

"Good." I smile at her. "Friends help each other out, with no questions asked. You can stay here as long as you want or need to. I'm never going to kick you out. So don't worry about that, you just worry about what movie we're watching tonight, and what flavor ice cream you want to pig out on later." I wink at her and run the loofah over her chest gently.

She gasps so I stop instantly. "Does that hurt? Shit I'm sorry,Brit."

"It's okay, not your fault I'm all bruised up." She says shakily while exhaling.

"It's not your fault either, Brit." I tell her when she makes eye contact with me. "It's not your fault either, remember that."

She nods and I finish washing her up and washing her hair in silence. I lift her out of the tub and wrap her in the towel and she hugs me tightly. I hug her tightly back and just hold her.

"Thank you." She whispered in my ear through tears. I lean back and smile at her.

"You don't have to keep thanking me Brit, but you are welcome." I tell her softly with a smile. I carry her back to the bed bridal style and quickly help her get dressed, I rewrap her ankle and prop it back up, and I grab her a new ice pack for her face.

"I'm going to hop in the shower, Brit, then we can start our movie. Sound good?"

She nods with a smile as Quinn knocks on the door. "Hey Brit…can I talk to you?" She asks sheepishly.

Brittany's face instantly drops, she looks over at me and I nod at her. "Hear her out, Brit." I say before going in the bathroom and closing the door.

**BRITTANY POV**

I was in a pretty good mood, Santana reassures me that she was helping me because she genuinely wants to and I believe her. I mean she's been giving me showers and baths, that's not something you just do for anyone.

When Quinn walked in the room, my stomach flipped and I felt my smile drop.

She came and sat down on the bed next to me. "Brittany, I'm sorry for bringing the detective without talking to you first." She says.

I don't say anything, I just keep my gaze down. She rests her hand on my thigh and I tense up. Quinn makes me nervous for some reason, right now. She doesn't move her hand back like Santana would have, she kept it there, which confused me. Why does Santana retract her hands so quickly but Quinn never does?

"Come on Brit, you know I'm pushy and controlling. I'm really sorry, babe. I just want to catch whoever attacked you." She says.

I sigh and turn to look her in her eyes and I see her tearing up. I put my hand on her's and squeeze it. "It's ok, Quinn. I know you were just trying to help."

She nodded. "I was…I um, I didn't mean to offend you or anything."

"It's ok, just ask me before you make a decision on my behalf next time." I tell her.

She nods and stands up. "Well, I'm going to get to bed. Good night, Brit."

"Good night."

She then walks to the bathroom door. "Good night, Satan!" She yells through the door.

"Night FaBitch!" Santana calls out. I can't help but laugh at how those still go at it after all these years.

Santana comes out shortly after in shorts and a tank top, with her hair in a wet messy bun. She smiles at me and my heart skips a beat.

"Why don't you pick out a movie, Brit and I will get us some ice cream." She says while walking out of the room.

I pick up the remote and scroll through the on demand move guide and settle for Bridesmaids. She comes back with two bowls of ice cream and hands me one.

"You still like strawberry, right?" She asks.

"You remember?" I ask with a shy smile.

"Of course, Brit." She shrugs and sits on the big chair thing again. "So, what movie did you pick?"

Halfway through the movie we both fall asleep, I assuming because I don't remember seeing anything after the bridal shower. I wake up from a loud thunderclap that scares me shitless. Yes, I'm still scared of storm. I sit up and see Santana fast asleep on the big chair thing again. She must really like it. The thunder booms again and I sit straight up.

"San…" I say softly. "Santana…"

She stirs and flutters her eyes open slowly. "What's wrong?" She asks sleepily while standing up.

I quickly get embarrassed for even waking her up because of the storm. "Nothing, nevermind." I say quickly. As soon as I finish the thunder rumbles again and I jump.

"Are you still scared of storms, Brit?" She asked while walking to the side of the bed.

I nod sheepishly.

She smiles. "Umm, do you want me to lay in bed with you? My bed is pretty big so we'll both have enough space."

"Ok." I mumble out while inside I'm jumping for joy. She walks to the other side of the bed and slips in. She tosses the cover she had on her when she was on the chair on both of us and lays down. She is so far away I swear like 2 people can fit between us.

"You ok now, Brit?" She asks as her eyes close.

"Yeah, I am…"

"Ok, good night, baby…" She whispers out before falling back asleep.

"Good night San." Wait….did you she just call me baby?! My stomach does a somersault, as I close my eyes with a small smile on my face.

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**Seems like both Brit and San are feeling something for one another but scared to act on it. This could get interesting. Lol**

**More flashbacks from Brittany as the story moves on.**


	5. Chapter 5 - Mixed Signals

**Thanks to Channy2425, Prettygleekbitch, BrittanaSantittany11111, Meshanneen04, StephaniieC, Rainbowbright108, BodyBroke, Desshaje, Fandomfiction, Madel, Slbsp-33, Brooke Ferguson, Guest, Peanut, and Fegw5709 for the reviews….glad you all are enjoying the story. I responded to you via PM if you have an account.**

**Madel – Sorry you were waiting for an update that never came…I absolutely wont bail on you this time….thanks for coming back! :)**

**Brook Ferguson – I'm glad you enjoy the story so far :)**

**Peanut – Thanks!**

**Yu - Thank you!**

**As always thanks to my BETA BodyBroke**

**_Brittany POV_**

* * *

Brittany POV

I felt a hand graze lightly over my back and finally rest on my hip so I started to wake up slowly. I felt the warmth of the body next to me and I instantly started to panic, too scared to open my eyes. What if they found me? I clenched my eyes shut tightly, trying to keep the tears from falling. Crying was strictly forbidden and usually resulted in more pain. I felt warm puffs of air on my neck as the body next to me slept peacefully, breathing in and out at a steady rate.

The body stirred slightly before shifting a little and exhaling slowly, while pulling me closer. The hand slowly moved from my hip back up my side. I lost my breath and gasped. I felt the body next to move again as they held me tighter. I bit my bottom lip to keep from screaming. This can't be happening right now. I was biting so hard I could taste the blood now seeping down the side of my mouth.

I started to shake slightly as hot tears escaped my eyes. "No." I whispered out softly, hoping they wouldn't hear me.

"What's wrong Brit?" I heard a sleepy voice rasp out as the body next to me began to rub my side.

I know that voice. I hesitantly open one eye and see that it's Santana lying next to me. She's so close, her face is nestled in my neck, with her hand on my side. I feel my body start to relax a little, but then I realize how close she is and I start to feel her breath on my neck and I get goose bumps. I shudder slightly, feeling electricity from her touch; it's amazing that her touch still has that effect on me. I turn so I'm facing her, as she instinctively moves closer, just like old times.

"I'm fine, Sanny." I whisper as I reach out to brush some hair out of her face.

She feels me graze her face accidentally and her eyes flutter open slowly. We are so close that I can literally taste her breath. I smile softly at her. She smiles back just as soft. We lock eyes and the world stops. I can feel her moving her hand slowly from my side to my back as she pulls me impossibly closer to her. My breath hitches and I close my eyes as I move my head slightly forward. I can tell she moves forward too because her head's resting on my pillow now, our lips are ghosting each other. I wait for the connection but it never comes. I open my eyes are notice her eyes widen as she quickly jumps up and tries to hop out of bed but gets caught in the sheet and falls to the ground.

'Fuck!" She mumbles out.

I sit up quickly. "Are you okay?" I ask her while leaning over the side of the bed.

"Y-yeah, I am." She stutters out. "I uh, I uh, I gotta use the bathroom." She rushes out quickly as she stands and runs out of the bedroom door.

I'm left wondering what the hell just happened. There are so many questions bouncing through my mind right now. Why she didn't use the bathroom in here like she always does? Why did she jump when she opened her eyes? I can't believe I just tried to kiss her. Then it all hits me and realization sinks in. She's disgusted with how I look…. I'm stupid to think that she would still love me, especially when I look like this.

I flop back on the bed as the tears pick up but now for a really different reason.

**SANTANA'S POV**

God, I am so fucking stupid. I just almost kissed Brittany. I flop down face first on the couch and groan loudly.

"Good morning, sunshine." Quinn says through a chuckle. "I made coffee, want me to get you a cup?"

I turn over so I'm on my back. "Good morning, and yes, thanks." I reply softly.

She comes back with a cup and lifts my head and sit down. I sit and take a sip, exhaling slowly.

"What's wrong?" She asks while turning on the TV.

"I fucked up, Q."I tell her.

She rolls her eyes and turns off the TV, turning so she's sitting facing me. "What did you do, San?"

"I almost kissed Brittany." I tell her while closing my eyes and dropping my head in my hands.

Quinn sighed. "Whoa…what happened, did she freak out?"

I shook my head. "No, I did. I realized what I was doing and jumped up and ran out of the room."

"Why the hell did you run?" Quinn asked with a horrified look on her face.

"What was I supposed to do?" I ask her getting irritated.

"Ok, calm down. Tell me what happened."

I take a sip of coffee and sit up straight. "So last night we fell asleep watching a movie, Brittany woke me up when it started to storm because she was scared."

"She's still scared of storms?" Quinn said with a small laugh. "That's still cute."

I can't help but smile. "Yeah, so she woke me up and I offered to lay in the bed with her. I laid down at the far edge so she was comfortable and had enough space. The next thing I know, when we woke up, we were cuddled in the middle of the bed. Like arms and legs intertwined, Q." I say slowly.

Quinn nods and takes a sip of her coffee.

"It felt so good, so familiar." I pause and think back on how perfect it felt to have Brittany in my arms, and to be in hers. "I remember opening my eyes and rubbing her back softly while pulling her close to me. She uh, she moved her head closer and I moved my head closer. Our faces were literally centimeters apart."

"Then what happened? Did she freak out?" Quinn asked me with wide eyes.

"No, I freaked out and ran." I whispered out.

"How do you think she feels right now? You need to go talk to her." Quinn said.

"She probably feels like I just tried to take advantage of her." I said while laying back on the couch.

"Or she feels that you just rejected her at one of her lowest points." Quinn said softly. "You need to make this right, San."

I lay back down on the couch and hide my face in the cushion.

"Blaine will be here to drop off crutches for Brit, and some pain meds, and give her the results of her rape screen in a few minutes, so you may want to get dressed." Quinn stated as I felt her stand up. "I'm going to get a little breakfast started. You should get Brit ready."

I groan and stand up. I go in the kitchen and get Brit a glass of orange juice, a bottle of water, and I make her a cup of tea. Ok, so I know it's overboard but I'm nervous.

I walk back to the bedroom and knock on the door. "Brit? C-can I come in?"

"It's your room." She says sadly.

"I uh, I got you something to drink." I tell her as I quickly put down the beverages.

"Thanks."

"Blaine is on his way with crutches and to give you the results from your rape screen. Want me to help you get dressed?" I ask her.

"You don't have to." She whispers. "I can do it."

I frowned slightly. "You sure, Brit?"

"I can get dressed myself, Santana." She swings her legs off the bed and attempts to stand but her ankle gives out and she stumbles. I run and catch her and she immediately tenses. "I'm fine." She whispers sharply.

She gets up and hops to the bathroom and closes the door behind her.

I sit down on the chaise and patiently wait for her. After 20 minutes I realize she hadn't come back out. so I knock on the door.

"Brit, are you okay?" I ask her.

She doesn't respond, but I can hear her crying.

"Brit, I'm coming in, okay?" I slowly open the door and see her sitting on the floor next to the tub. I kneel in front of her. "Did you fall, Brit?"

She shook her head.

"Here, let me help you." I stretch out my hands and after an internal debate she finally accepts them and I pull her up. I help her sit on the toilet. "What's wrong, Brit?" She refuses to look up at me. I kneel in front of her and take my hand to lift her chin.

"You don't have to look at me if you don't want to." She whispers out as a few tears drop.

I shake my head. "Brit…Brit, I'm sorry I almost kissed you. I shouldn't have done that, and I'm sorry for running out of the room, too. I just needed to process what I did." I grab her hand. "I didn't mean to upset you."

"Is it because I'm ugly now with all the bruises?" Brittany whispered out as her eyes dropped from my eyes once again and her tears were free flowing. "I disgust you, don't I?"

I gasped, Quinn was right. "Brittany, you could never disgust me, sweetheart, why would you think that?"

She sniffled and cried a little harder.

"Please talk to me, Brit Brit." I coaxed as I held her hand a little tighter.

"I h-have all these bruises, and cuts. And I was r-r-raped." She said through tears. "And you're scared to touch me, you always move your hand quickly."

My heart dropped and I swear I even stopped breathing for a few seconds. "Brit, I don't know how to be around you, I don't know if I should give you space or just sit and hold you. I, I don't want to hurt you physically, so I'm careful around your bruises." I try to explain. I shake my head and sigh. "Your touch still gives me goose bumps, and it still sets my skin on fire like it did in high school and it scares me. It has nothing to do you, sweetheart. I just don't know what I'm supposed to do sometimes… so I get nervous."

I give her a moment to process what I just told her.

"Brittany, when I look at you, I don't see the bruise on your face, or the cuts and scratches, I don't see someone that was raped. I see the most beautiful woman in the world. You are still absolutely beautiful to me, Brit."

She shook her head. "No, I'm not."

"Yes, you are, Brit." I stand and grab a hand mirror on the counter. I turn it around and have her look in it. "Tell me what you see?"

She simply shrugged.

"Want me to tell you what I see?" I ask her with a small smile.

"If you want." She whispered.

"Well outside of your jaw dropping natural beauty, I see an amazing dancer, a great joke teller, an extraordinary friend, an undercover genius." I laugh softly. "I see a gentle soul, a kind spirit…my first true love." I pause and swallow thickly as a tear slides down my face. "I see Brittany Susan Pierce."

I put the mirror on the floor and grab her hands again. "I don't see the bruises when I look at you Brit, and I wish you didn't either." I say softly while locking eyes with her.

I reach my hand up slowly and shakily brush a stray strand of hair behind her ear. I then slowly start to kiss her tears away softly. She closes her eyes and lets out a shaky breath. I softly kiss her forehead and each cheek. She opens her eyes and we lock eyes for a moment before she closes them again. I lean in to kiss her lips but I stop and sigh shaking my head. I cant…this isn't right.

"L-let's get you dressed Brit." I say with a weak smile.

"Thank you." She whispers out.

"I hate to see you cry Brit, you know that." I tell her as I stand up and a get warm wet towel and gently wash her face. "Come on, let me help you get ready for Dr. Bowtie." I wink at her.

**PUCK POV**

The past day I've been racking my brain on how we are going to approach this situation with Brittany. Quinn royally fucked up by having Brittany talk to a detective, but if Brittany didn't say his name then maybe it's okay…only time will tell. I mean, I get why she did it, but still.

I pull up to Marco's apartment so we can devise a plan and see how much trouble we can determine Brittany is really in.

As soon as I walk in, Marco tosses me a beer and pours me a shot of whiskey. "This bad, bro?" I ask him.

He knocks back his shot and sits down with a manila folder. He slowly opens it up.

"So I did a little digging and your friend may be in a bit more trouble than we initially thought. " He states while opening his beer.

"Well, talk to me, man, let me know what the story is." I ask impatiently.

"Ok, so Vincent Moreli, mainly known as Big Vinny, but he's also known at 7 Star." Marco starts. "We know him as Big Vinny that owns the chain of Italian restaurants and pizza shops, _Vinnys_. But he's apparently a big figure in the mob."

"Shit." I whisper out. "How did Brittany get mixed up in that?"

"Vinny is a family guy, comes across as a model father to his 3 daughters Angela, Carmela, and Rosa; Rosa, the youngest, is a student at the _Pierce Dance Academy_."

"Shit, that's Brittany's studio." I tell him while taking a swig of my beer.

"Exactly, I'm assuming they met through there somehow." Marco states.

"Ok, so the asshole obviously raped her, now what?" I ask.

"Well, Vinny or 7 Star, whichever he is acting as at the time, usually doesn't let his victims go." Marco says. "So chances are your girl is on the run and I'm willing to bet a million dollars….he's looking for her."

"Shit, shit, shit." I yell out while standing up and running my hands over my head. "What do I do now?"

"You said Quinn called the police, right?" Marco asked while pouring me another shot.

I knocked the shot back. "Yeah, she did." I rasp out as the liquor burns my throat.

"Gotta love your pushy ass girlfriend." He laughs.

"Watch it, Marco…not in the mood for that shit today." I warn while pointing at him.

He holds up his hands in surrender. "Just trying to lighten the mood."

"You want to crack jokes while one of my friends has a mobster after her?! Go to hell, Marco!" I yell at him.

"Listen man, I'm sorry." He says will standing up. "Look, we can either look to the police to keep Brittany safe and alive or we can handle this ourselves." He says the latter while raising his eyebrow and extending his hand.

"So back to our old ways?" I ask him.

He nods. "You know what we need to do." He states firmly.

"Come on Marco…I quit that life." I said while shaking my head. "I have a great job and girl… I can't go back."

"Well you may lose that girl and her friends if Vinny gets a hold of them." Marco reasons.

"Shit…." I pour myself another shot and knock it back quickly. "Fine." I reluctantly say while shaking his hand. "I gotta get outta here, bro. I'll call you later so we can put a plan in motion."

I get out to my truck and lean my head on the steering wheel. "Fuck!" I scream out. It seems like no matter how much I try to lead an honest life, some dumb shit always happens that pulls me back. The main question is whether or not Brit is worth me slipping back into my old ways. I can't even believe I'm questioning that… Brittany is one of my oldest friends, and it affects Quinn and Santana as well. I know what I need to do. I exhale and pull off to head to my photography gig for the day.

**BRITTANY POV**

I was in that grey area between sleep and consciousness when I felt someone pull the covers from my neck and rest them at my waist, I then felt a cold towel on my face. I opened my eyes and saw Santana sitting next to me.

"Go back to sleep, Brit." She whispered with a smile. "You were sweating in your sleep and I just wanted to cool you off a little. I didn't mean to wake you."

"It's ok. I'm ready to wake up." I say groggily.

She laughed softly. "You sure about that?"

"The pain pills Blaine gave me were strong." I whisper out.

"Yeah, they are super strong, but hopefully they help. Are you feeling better?" She asks while dipping the towel in a bucket of ice water on the bedside table.

"Was that real?" I asked her.

"Was what real?" She asked while running the towel over my forehead again.

"We almost kissed again in the bathroom earlier." I whisper while sitting up.

She clears her throat. "Um, I don't know what you're talking about, Brit."

I look her square in the eye and she drops her gaze. "You sure?"

She nods. "I can't, Brittany, it's not right. Um, yeah… so can we drop it please?"

"Sure." I whisper out.

I laid back down and she put the towel over my forehead again, before dabbing it on my neck as well.

"Did Blaine tell you the results from the rape screen?" I ask her.

She shook her head. "That's none of my business, Brit."

"I want you to know." I told her.

She nodded. "O-ok."

"I don't have any STDs or anything, there are some tears." She winced. "And some swelling, but he said everything else is ok."

"That's good Brit, glad you didn't catch anything." She said softly. "Blaine left some crutches for you, so you can move around better on your own now."

"I like when you help me." I say shyly.

She laughed. "I like helping you, too."

"Are we watching movies again tonight?" I ask her to change the subject, since I can feel myself blushing.

"Yeah, we can. I have to go over some resumes for this chef position at my restaurant, but we can watch movies if you want." She says with a smile. "What do you want to eat for dinner tonight?"

"You don't have to keep cooking." I tell her.

"I'm not, I' making Quinn cook tonight." She says with a wink.

I laugh. "It doesn't matter, whatever she wants to cook is fine."

"Cool, do you want to come lay down in the living room? You must be sick of the bedroom by now." She asks me. "That way we all aren't cooped up in here while we watch movies."

"Quinn is staying the night again?" I ask her with a slight frown. Either she didn't notice or she didn't care because she completely ignored it.

"Yeah, she'll be staying for a while, I guess." She replied nonchalantly.

"That doesn't bother you?"

She shakes her head. "She's always here, I don't even give it a second thought."

She helps me up and hands me my crutches. I hobble to the living room and Santana sets me up on the sectional. She props my ankle with a pillow and puts another pillow behind my back.

"Comfy Brit?" Quinn asks while coming in to the living room with a smile.

I nod as she hands me the remote control.

"I'm making alfredo tonight. Is that ok?" She asks.

"Yeah whatever you cook is fine, Quinn, thanks." I tell her.

Santana comes back to the living room and sits down on the sectional next to me with her laptop and iPad. My breath hitches a little when I realize how close she sat down. She glances over at me. "You okay, Brit?" She asked.

"Yeah, I'm ok." I reply shakily when leaning back on the pillow, which in turns makes me lean into her side. "I'm sorry." I quickly say.

She laughs. "It's fine B, are you sure you're ok?"

I laugh off my nerves. "Yeah I think the pills made me jittery or something." I lie hoping she buys it.

"Yeah, you seem a little off, maybe take a little nap until dinner is done. I shouldn't have woken you up earlier." Santana replies while rubbing my back casually. "Relax."

I nod and lean into the back of the couch resting my head on the soft cushion and before I know it, I'm fast asleep.

**Quinn POV**

I noticed Santana sat down really close to Brittany on the sectional. Okay, so not _that_ close but Brittany's back is basically on Santana's side if she leans back. I sit down on the love seat and raise an eyebrow at Santana when she glances my way.

She mouths "what?"

I point to her and Brittany and raise my eyebrow again. She rolls her eyes and begins typing on her laptop again.

My biggest fear for them is them moving too fast. I know that Santana still has feelings for Brittany; she still loves that girl deeply. I don't know where Brittany's head is right now. That scares me the most…what if Brittany doesn't feel the same way. Hell, what if Brittany has a girlfriend or a boyfriend. I need to talk to Santana and make sure she's careful. Maybe I'll talk to Brit too and see where her head is.

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B**rittany and Santana almost kissed? Twice? Hmmmmmmm**

**Brittany involved in the mob? WTF**

**I wonder what plan Puck is working on**


	6. Chapter 6 - Never Let Me Go

**Thanks to Channy2425, Desshaje, Madel, Paigeheartsglee12, Rainbowbright108, XenaLin, Yu, Brooke Ferguson, Devilgrrl182, and SR4SC for your reviews.**

**Thanks to all of the GUEST reviewers as well.**

**Madel – I love reply back to reviewers and interacting with you all…that's the best part. :) And nope I would never leave my faithful readers….you guys rock.**

**A few of you mentions how deep and dark the story is….yeah it is, BUT there will be some adorable fluff moments sprinkled it as well**

**Welcome to all the new favorites and follows…hope you enjoy the story!**

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**SANTANA POV**

We started watching some boring ass movie that Quinn picked. Q literally has the worst taste in movies sometimes. Halfway through the movie, Brittany fell asleep, and so did Quinn. I, however, was wide-awake. I just couldn't sleep. My mind was racing, going over my almost kiss with Brit. Two times! Two times, I put her in this awkward ass position. Both times I had an angel on one shoulder telling me it's not the right time, she's vulnerable, and fragile. The other shoulder had a devil reminding me I haven't had sex in …. well, let's not even bring that up, and to just go for it because more than likely, she wouldn't turn me down. I picked the angel, obviously, so I wouldn't put either of us in a weird position. Brittany needs a friend right now, her best friend, and that's what I'm going to be.

Speaking of awkward positions, Brit looks so uncomfortable on the couch right now, like her back is all hunched over and she's leaning on the back of the couch. I slowly get up so I can lay her flat on the couch. She stirred a little but a soft kiss to the forehead and she settled back to sleep. I went over to the love seat where Quinn was and pushed her over so I could squeeze in.

"What the hell San?" Quinn hissed out.

"Shut up and move over." I whispered out.

"Go back to the couch with Brit." She said while sighing.

"Just move your ass over Q, damn." I groan while rolling my eyes. "Why is everything a fuckin' chore with you?"

Quinn sighs and scoots over and I lie down, snatching the cover off of her and putting it on myself as well. She sighs and wraps her arm around my waist to keep me from falling off the love seat, since I'm basically on the edge. I kept wiggling to get comfortable but it's not working. Quinn is fine to cuddle with sometimes, but not when she's angry, and now she is pissed that I woke her up.

"Damn it, Santana, stop moving or get up and go to your bedroom." Quinn said while sitting up.

"Relax, geez." I whisper. "Sorry."

Quinn sighs and lays back down pulling me close and wrapping her arm back around my waist. "I can feel your heart beating, Santana." Quinn said while lifting her head. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, Quinn." I whisper back.

"San, are you sure?"

"Yeah, I'm ok, go back to sleep." I tell her while clutching my chest, because yes it does hurt like hell right now. I feel Quinn rub my back for a moment before she turns over facing the back of the love seat and goes to back to sleep. I lay awake with my eyes open and just stare at Brittany. God, she is beautiful. When I told her I don't see the bruise on her face, I honestly and truly meant it.

I see her stirring in her sleep, so I get up and go kneel on the floor and rub circles on her back to help her calm down. As I'm rubbing her back, Puck walks in the door.

"Hey, she okay?" He asked when he saw me on the floor by the sectional.

I nod, "Yeah, she is."

He nods, "Where is Q?"

I point over to the love seat, where Quinn is sleeping peacefully again. "You guys go on back to the guestroom. I don't want to wake Brit, so I will sleep out here with her."

"Ok." He walks over and kisses the top of my head and squeezes my shoulder before going and picking up Quinn to carry her to the bedroom.

Once I hear the door close to the guestroom, I lean over and ghost my lips over Brittany's bruise, wishing I could kiss the pain away from her, like in a fairytale. I grab a blanket from the end of the couch and lay it on her from the waist down, so she doesn't get too hot. I then sit Indian style on the floor and just watch her. I try to think of a logical explanation as to why anyone would attack her. How the hell did Brit get mixed up with one of the biggest mobsters in the city? It just doesn't make sense.

I sigh and stand up to grab a glass of water, since I know I won't be going to sleep any time soon. I decide on a cup of tea instead and sit back on the floor. Ok, so I know I'm being super creepy by just watching Brittany sleep, but I just want to make sure she is ok. I _have_ to make sure she is ok. She trusted me to help her, why else would she show up to my house, randomly at that, after all these years? We don't even tweet each other. Hell, I don't even follow her on Twitter!

I keep going over different scenarios in my head when I hear Brittany crying out in her sleep.

"No, please don't." She whispered out.

I set my mug on the table and stood up slowly.

"I-I won't do it again….I'm sorry."

"Brit…" I breathe out. I can see she's crying in her sleep as she's balling her hands into tight fists.

"No…no…" She cries out again, just above a whisper.

I run over to her and rub her arm. "Wake up, Brit."

She begins thrashing while screaming out now, louder and louder with every word. "No! Help! Somebody help!"

I quickly sit on the couch behind her and pull her into my chest while rocking her and holding her arms down so she doesn't hurt herself. I took a few blows to the body in the process. Puck and Quinn come running out of the room.

"What's going on?!" Puck asked.

"San." Quinn said softly through her own tears.

"It's a nightmare." I whisper out to them. "I got her, go back to sleep."

"Santana…." Quinn says while taking a few steps forward.

"I got it, Q, I'm okay. Go get some rest."

They reluctantly nod and go back in the bedroom.

"Wake up, baby, come on Brit. Wake up." I coo in her ear while peppering kisses to the top of her head. She is still thrashing, well struggling to at least, I have her pretty hemmed up. I start to feel tears sliding slowly down my cheeks.

"No, save me, Sanny….please." She says softly while still struggling.

Huh, what? I'm speechless. Am I in the dream or did she dream of me saving her? That would explain her showing up to my house. I wonder how many times she has dreamed of me saving her, or even cried out for me to save her. My heart shatters, yet again. I decide the best thing to do is play along with the dream.

"I got you Brit, I'm here sweetheart. Sanny is here." I tell her while hugging her tight. "I need you to wake up for me."

"Help…" She whispers out one last time.

"I got you, Brit….I swear I got you, baby." I tell her through tears.

She suddenly jerks one more time and wakes up. She attempts to jump up and run, but I hold her tightly. "It's me, Brit."

"Santana?" She asked shakily.

"Yeah, it's me, it's Sanny." I tell her while rubbing her arms.

She turns so she's facing me now and rests her head on my chest while holding me tight and sobbing.

"It's okay, Brit….it was just a nightmare." I tell her through a shaky breath. "You're ok now." I breathe out while rubbing her back.

"Never let me go." Brittany says softly. "Please."

I knew that request had a double meaning to it, and I felt a pull at my heart. I closed my eyes and nodded. "I will never let you go, Brit. I promise." I tell her while kissing her forehead, as the tears seemed never ending from both of our eyes. "I will never let you go again."

I sit on the couch and hold her until she falls asleep again. Well, more like cries herself to sleep. I exhale slowly and try to keep from sobbing myself. I lean over and grab the blanket off the floor and cover us up. I don't go to sleep; I stay up just in case Brittany has another nightmare. I instead stare out the window at the black sky and pray to whoever is listening that this situation doesn't go from bad to worse. But I already know it will.

* * *

**BRITTANY POV**

5am. I woke up in Santana's arms for the second day in a row. I instantly feel safe. I slowly lifted my head and saw she was smiling down at me.

"Hey, Brit." She whispered out while tucking a piece of hair behind my ear.

"Hey." I whisper back with a shy smile before laying my head back on her chest and exhaling.

"Are you ok?" She asked gently as she rubbed my back.

"Yeah, I am." I tell her while nodding. "Thank you."

"You're welcome, B." She whispers.

"Did you hear that?" I ask her tensing a little when I heard a faint scream as I look up at Santana.

She rolls eyes. "Puck and Quinn are probably having sex or something. From what I gather during their impromptu sex sessions, in my damn house, is that she is a screamer." She smirks while rubbing my back to get me to relax again. "Come B, relax." She coaxed as I lay back down on her chest.

I think back to last night. I know I had a nightmare - more like a flashback - where Vinny was punishing me, well beginning to punish me, for not being active enough in bed that night. We had been having sex for close to six hours, or as I remember, over a dozen orgasms on his part. Sex with him was torture, but he demanded it. No matter the time of day or night, he come and grab me out of the small room they kept me in and force me to have sex. I wasn't wet and couldn't get wet, so it burned, it hurt, and I literally felt my vagina tearing. He didn't care, however, he just kept going, forcing himself in her deeper and harder.

I shuddered at the memory. Santana took this as a sign of me being cold and she pulled the blanket higher on my back and rubbed it a little. I lean up and kiss her on the cheek. She smiles softly, more so with her eyes than with her mouth.

"What was that for, Brit?" She asks.

"I cried out for you so many times to come and save me, to rescue me, but you never showed." I started as her face dropped. "I know it's not your fault, but part of me always wished you would just randomly appear and rescue me." I felt a tear slide down my cheek, but before I could wipe it away, she leaned forward and kissed it off softly. "I, I just wanted you to save me San, and last night you did."

She blushed, "I just held you, Brit. I didn't really do anything."

"You never could take a compliment." I tell her while laughing and looking at her. "You look tired."

She shook her head. "I'm ok. It's still kind of early Brit, why don't you try to get a little more sleep?" She says softly.

"A-are you comfortable? I mean do you want me to get up?" I stutter out. I don't want to move and lose the comfort and security of her arms around me.

"I'm fine. Do you want to get up? I mean, do you want to go to the bedroom so you can lay in the bed?" She asks.

"No, can we just lay here?" I ask her, hoping she doesn't say no.

"Whatever you want, Brit." She says through a yawn.

"Okay." I cuddle back into her chest and smile when I feel her arms wrap tightly around my body. I close my eyes and allow myself to fall back asleep, safe in Santana's arms again.

* * *

**QUINN POV**

5am. "Puck, are you sleep?" I ask while turning on my side to face him.

"No babe, I'm up." Puck replies softly while opening his eyes and pulling me closer as he wraps his strong arm around my body. "You okay?"

I shake my head. "No, I just don't understand who would attack Brittany, why would anyone attack her? She is seriously the most harmless person ever." I sigh. "It just pisses me off."

"That asshole will pay." Puck told me. I leaned back and looked in his eyes.

"Noah…"

"Go back to sleep, babe." He said while kissing me softly and closing his eyes.

"Noah, what have you done?" I ask him while sitting up. "Please don't tell me you did something stupid."

He sighed and opened his eyes. "I haven't done anything, Quinn." He grabs my hand. "Come on, lay back down."

I reluctantly lay back down and he pulls me to lay flush on him. He leaned up and kissed me passionately while letting his hands explore my body. When the kiss broke I hid my face in his neck and sighed.

"So, tell me about this Big Vinny guy that has you and Santana so shook up?" I ask him. "Does he just own the pizzerias and restaurants?"

"Long story short, Vinny is a mobster." Puck says softly.

"What?!" I shriek out.

He nods and sighs. "Marco did some research and apparently Vinny doesn't let girls just go…"

My eyes widen. "You think Brit is on the run? H-he's looking for her?" I stutter out.

"Maybe." Puck said calmly. "I want you to stay here with San and Brit for a while, okay?" Puck shook his head. "I need the three of you to stay all together."

"Are San and I in danger?" I ask.

"I dunno. But I will feel better if you are all together at night. I need to do some more research on his operations and find out what his patterns are. So just stay here for a while. Don't go back to your apartment alone for anything, Q." He says sternly. "We don't know what information he has on Brittany, so he may know her friends addresses and hangouts." He hugs me. "We have to cautious."

I nod and quickly lay back down. This is bad. This is really bad.

* * *

**SANTANA POV**

So on top of the nagging pain in my chest lately, I'm developing insomnia. The only plus to that is watching Brit sleep. Oh and getting to hold her while she sleeps. I glance over at the clock on the cable box and see it's 9am. I decide to get up and make some breakfast for everyone. I try to gently roll from under Brit, but she stirs and wakes up.

"San?"

"Hey Brit, I'm just going to make some breakfast." I tell her with a smile.

"I can help you." She replies.

"You don't have to do that, Brit." I tell her while shaking my head.

"Please, let me. I'm getting kind of stir crazy just laying around. I want to keep my other leg strong." She says while sitting up.

I sigh softly to myself. "Ok Brit, but don't overexert yourself, okay?" I walk over to the couch and help her up and hand her the crutches.

She smiles as she hops to the kitchen with them and goes to the fridge. "Pancakes?" She asks.

"Y-yeah." I go to the kitchen and pull out the ingredients and place them on the counter. "Do you want to stand to mix?"

"Yeah." She hands me one of the crutches.

I lean it against the wall, and position everything on the counter within reaching distance for her. She immediately starts cracking eggs and mixing it up.

"So Brit, I hear you have a dance studio." I say to make a little conversation.

She turns and smiles at me. "Yeah, it's called Pierce Dance Academy." She then turns back to the bowl and continues mixing. "I teach mainly 4–10 year olds. Well, those are the classes I supervise."

"That's cool." I tell her while pulling out bacon and sausage to fry. "So do you actually teach yourself or do you just run the studio?"

"I mainly just run it but sometimes I teach classes. I was hoping to land a job choreographing videos from some celebrities but now…." Her voice trails off.

I notice the change in her demeanor now and quickly improvise. "Well, I've made some celebrities friends, I can drop a good word for you, so when you are all healed up you can maybe work with them."

"Are you serious?!" She turns to me and her eyes twinkle for a moment.

I shrug. "Well yeah. You are the best dancer I've ever seen. Way better than some of these choreographers doing videos now."

"Thanks, but I can't." She said quickly while shaking her head.

"Why not, Brit?" I ask her while turning around.

"I just can't… C-can we drop it please?" She whispers out.

"Y-yeah sure." I tell her softly.

There was an uncomfortable and awkward silence between the two of us that was killing me. Brittany was keeping something from me and I wanted to know what it was.

"How do you want your eggs?" I ask her.

"Scrambled is fine."

"Um, is there anyone I can call for you, Brit? Um, a girlfriend, or boyfriend? Maybe your parents or sister? Someone at the studio?"

"I dont have a girlfriend or boyfriend." She shakes her head. "I can email my parents for our weekly chat like I usually do and my sister is overseas for school."

I do a backflip internally that she is single, yes I know I shouldn't be celebrating but I can't help it. "Ok, well should I call the studio?"

She quickly shakes her head. "N-no. No one can know I'm here."

"Brit…do you think someone is after you?" I ask her while walking up behind her.

"I think so…" She whispers out.

"You are safe here, ok?" I tell her. "I promise I won't let anything happen to you." I tell her confidently. Now I know it's a promise I inevitably can't help, but I will do my damnedest to hold true to that promise.

"But what if something happens to you?" She whispers. "I shouldn't come here. I have to leave."

I gulp, with all this craziness I hadn't really considered my life being put in danger or someone coming after me. "Don't worry about that. You are not leaving Brit. You are still pretty hurt, I would feel better if you stayed here. Besides, I have Snixx tucked away for a rainy day." I wink at her and try to smile. Truthfully, now I'm really scared, and with Quinn staying here, that puts her in danger too. Shit is about to get crazy.

She nods and we go back to cooking when I notice an envelope sticking under my door. I go to pick it up and open it. I pull out the contents and drop it instantly. Gasping, I stumble a little as I feel my chest tightening. I vaguely hear Brittany scream my name and then… blackness.

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**Shorter chapter before some craziness starts.**

**What the hell was in that envelope?**

**More of Puck's POV in the next chapter**

**Brit and Santana are getting a little closer...**


	7. Chapter 7 - You're Safe WIth Me

**Thanks to Jelleykakes, Paigeheartsglee12, Prettgleekbitch, Rainbowbright108, desshaje, Bella, Channy2425, MattyBelkin, Meshannen04, Yu, Deb 92, Castlewalls7, MG07and the GUEST reviews.**

**I LOVE how into the story you guys are… :)**

**Finger in the envelope?! Hmmmmmmmmmmmmm**

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**Thanks for all the wonderful reviews and PMs I have received about the chapter.**

**My BETA rocks so thanks BodyBroke for all your help**

**Just to clarify when it's Brittany's POV and something is in _italics _it's a flashback**

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**Ok I have too much going on with 3 stories...accidentally deleted the chapter from the wrong story. Yikes here it is**

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**_Santana POV_**

_"But what if something happens to you?" She whispers. "I shouldn't have come here. I have to leave."_

_I gulp, with all this craziness I hadn't really considered my life being put in danger or someone coming after me. "Don't worry about that. You are not leaving Brit. You are still pretty hurt, I would feel better if you stayed here. Besides, I have Snixx tucked away for a rainy day." I wink at her and try to smile. Truthfully, now I'm really scared, and with Quinn staying here, that puts her in danger too. Shit is about to get crazy._

_She nods and we go back to cooking when I notice an envelope sticking under my door. I go to pick it up and open it. I pull out the contents and drop it instantly. Gasping, I stumble a little as I feel my chest tightening. I vaguely hear Brittany scream my name and then… blackness._

* * *

**Brittany POV**

When Santana passed out, my life stopped. Everything froze. My lungs stopped working. My heart stopped beating. Everything stopped. I lost my sense of hearing, smell, taste, vision. The only thing I had left was my sense of touch. I bent down and touched her skin, which to me was burning hot. Her skin has always felt like fire when I touched her, though. Aside from our intense connection just by looking each other in the eyes, we've always been able to communicate through simple yet powerful touches.

Something in our touch brought me back to reality. I shook my head as tears poured out of my eyes. I don't remember much of what happened within the next few minutes, aside from Puck and Quinn yelling at each other while trying to wake Santana up. I opened my mouth to speak but nothing came out. So I picked up her hand and just held it, as Quinn dropped to the floor to try to wake her up.

"Don't move her!" Quinn yelled out to Puck, who was bending down to pick her up.

"Why?"

"What if she like broke her neck?" Quinn reasoned while searching for a pulse.

"She didn't break her neck," Puck replied while shaking his head. "Check her pulse, Q!" He said frantically while running his hands through his hair.

"I can't find it! Wake up, San, come on, babe….don't you fuckin die on me, Santana." Quinn cried out.

"Shit….shit….shit…." Puck yelled out.

"Call 911, Puck!" Quinn screamed as the Latina still laid motionless on the floor.

"Ok." Quinn said quickly while trying once again.

"Dammit, Santana wake up….don't do this." Puck said while hovering over us on the floor.

I kissed her hand before leaning over and kissing her forehead softly. I rub her arm softly. She fluttered her eyes open and instantly panicked so I sat back. She tried to sit up but Quinn held her down.

"Relax babe…you're ok, San." Quinn said through tears, stroking her hair. "Don't move your head or neck, an ambulance is on the way."

She tried to nod but winced in pain and closed her eyes tightly.

"Don't move." I whisper to her.

She opens her eyes slowly and shifts them to look at me as a few tears start to slide down her face.

"Please don't cry, San." I tell her while wiping my own tears. "Close your eyes." I whisper. When she does I gently wipe her tears away with the pad of my thumb.

"Brit, stay with her, I'm going to quickly get dressed and grab you some pants so we can go to the hospital, ok?" Quinn says while jumping up and running to the bedroom.

"I'm going to wait downstairs for the ambulance." Puck says while running out of the door.

Santana has a terrified look in her eyes, I don't know if I've ever seen her look this scared before. She reaches out for my hand again so I quickly grab hers and hold it. She squeezes it slightly; I guess that's as much strength as she has right now.

"My chest." She says hoarsely before coughing, well struggling to cough. She sounds really winded and like it hurts her to talk.

"Shhh, don't talk, Sanny." I tell her while rubbing her arm with my other hand. "Um, blink once for yes and twice for no. Will that work?"

She blinks once and I smile at her.

"Does your chest hurt?" I ask her softly.

She blinks once as more tears spill out.

"Really bad, huh?" I ask her sympathetically.

She blinks once again.

"Do you remember what happened?"

She blinks twice, then closed her eyes and takes a deep breath as she winces in pain.

Before I could say anything else, Quinn comes running back fully dressed. "Ok Brit, do you need me to help you?"

I shake my head no and slip on the sweats over my pajama pants just as Puck leads the paramedics in the condo. Quinn helps me to my feet so we are out of the way. They ask her a bunch of questions and put an oxygen mask on her to help her breathe a little easier. They then strap her to a stretcher and start to take her out of the condo.

'Brit…" Santana calls faintly with her hand out.

The paramedics stop. "One of you can ride with her in the ambulance to keep her calm."

"Go ahead, Brit." Quinn says with a smile. "Puck and I will be right there."

I grab my crutches and nod, hopping quickly behind the stretcher. Once we reach outside, I realize I'm out of my comfort zone… I wasn't supposed to leave the condo. My body tenses and I lose myself and stumble off the curb as my crutches fly out of my hands. I glance at San and see her eyes widen as she tries to sit up but one of the paramedics is holding her down. A man catches me and I lose my breath until I realize he's an officer. He hands me my crutches back.

"Ma'am, are you okay?" He asked me with a creepy smile. "Wouldn't want you to get hurt again."

"Thanks. I'm fine." I mumble. I look up into his eyes and I shudder slightly.

"Cold?" He asks with that same creepy smile.

I quickly shake my head as I make my way to the ambulance quickly. I sit down and immediately grab Santana's hand. Wait... why did he look so familiar?

* * *

**Santana POV**

I slowly start to wake up from this pounding headache I have right now, which is probably from that annoying ass beeping sound, what the fuck is that? I groan and slowly open my eyes.

"What the…" I rasp out softy to myself. Where is my voice and why the hell am I in the hospital?

Waking up in a hospital room without knowing how you got there is one of the scariest feelings in the world. The last thing I clearly remember is opening an envelope that was tucked under my door as Brit and I made breakfast.

Shit! Was I attacked? I quickly look down at my arms and sigh in relief when I don't see any cuts or anything. I do, however, have this headache and that nagging pain is still in my chest. I start to close my eyes again when I hear Brittany's voice.

"Hey, you're awake." She says softly as she hobbled over to me.

"Hey, Brit." I rasp out.

"Do you want some water?" She asks.

I nod instantly and cringe because of the pain. "Don't nod…" She tells me as she pours me a cup of water from the pitcher. I sit up slowly, struggling the entire way. Why am I so weak right now?

She balances on the crutches and hands me the glass. I take a few sips and hand it back.

"Thanks."

She nods and smiles while putting the cup down.

"How are you feeling?" She asks me.

"Well, my head hurts and my chest does, too." I tell her truthfully. "Why am I in the hospital?"

"You passed out." Brittany said with tears threatening to fall.

"Hey, I'm ok, Brit." I tell her, I absolutely hate seeing Brittany cry, it literally makes my heart skip beats.

"You didn't wake up, so, so, so, we, we had to call 911." She stuttered out wiping her tears. "It was so scary."

"Come here, Brit." I say softly while opening my arms to hug her. She bends down and hugs me tightly. "I'm ok Brit, please don't cry. Come on." She leans up slightly and I wipe her eyes for her. "Here, why don't you sit down here with me." I scoot over so she has room to lie down next to me.

"I need you San, you can't die." She whispers.

I smile and shift so I can wrap my arm around her waist. "I'm not going to die Brit, ok?"

She nods and sighs shakily. I lean over and kiss her on the cheek. "How is your ankle?"

"It's okay, only really hurts when I stand on it." She says while wiggling closer to me.

"That's good." I tell her as I lay my head on her shoulder.

"How does your face feel?" I ask her just above a whisper.

"It's okay," She says with a shrug.

"Well, I will ice it for you tonight when we get back to my place." I tell her.

My head hurts so bad that I close my eyes and exhale slowly.

"Go back to sleep, San." She whispers softly while resting her hand on my arm and rubbing it gently.

I fall asleep a few minutes later.

I wake back up to what sounds like a thousand voices in the room talking quickly. I groan loudly so everyone hears. I hate being woken up with a passion, unless it's by Brit.

"Santana?" Quinn says softly.

I open my eyes and see her inches away from my face. "Really, Q?" I rasp out softly. "Back up a little bit."

"You scared the hell out of me earlier." She replied sadly. "I will kick your ass the next time you do that."

I laugh softly. "I'm sorry, Q." I tell her sincerely. "Here, give me a hug and calm down."

She leans down and hugs me tightly. "How are you feeling?"

"Like a truck ran over me." I tell her while scooting to sit up.

"The doctor will be in to give you some painkillers in a few minutes. You banged your head pretty hard on the floor when you passed out." She said with a frown. "That's why your head hurts so bad still."

"Oh." I tell her as she holds an ice pack to the back of it. I look around the room and notice some nurses but no Brittany. "Where's Brit?"

"She went to the cafeteria." Quinn replies.

"Why would you let her go by herself, Q!" I yell out as my heart monitor speeds up.

"Miss Lopez, you need to relax." One of the nurses says sternly.

I feel my chest tightening so I grab it. "Go find Brit...now." I whisper out. "Please, Q."

Quinn nods and leaves the room.

The doctor comes in and rattles off a bunch of numbers and medications to the nurse before finally telling me I passed out due to high stress levels which caused my blood pressure to elevate, and me hitting the floor. Honestly I tune out most of what he says after that, until I hear the word "overnight".

I quickly shake my head and regret it right away as I wince in pain. "I'm not staying here overnight, doc."

"Can I stay with her?" I hear Brittany ask as she hobbles her way back in the room.

"We would prefer Miss Lopez has complete peace and serenity around her to keep her body relaxed." The doctor said quickly.

"I will be quiet, and I can sleep in the chair." Brittany said softly. "Please let me stay with her."

"She will relax me." I say quietly while glancing over at Brittany briefly with a shy smile.

The doctor sighed and nodded. "Fine, but you need to rest Miss Lopez, so you will still need to sleep a lot, and the pain medication we will give you for your head and chest will knock you out pretty quickly after it hits your bloodstream."

"That's fine." I tell him.

The doctor leaves and tells me that he will have the nurses bring me dinner shortly. I look at the clock and see it's 5pm. "Shit, I've been here all day?!"

"Santana...babe, you have to stay calm." Quinn says while sitting on the edge of the bed.

"Are you staying, too?" I ask her.

She shakes her head. "No, I'm waiting for Puck to pick me up; we are going back to this place."

"Where is he?" I ask.

"He found an envelope on the floor in your condo; he picked it up, and said he had to go take care of something." Quinn said with a shrug.

The nurse comes in and pushes some meds, saying I needed to sleep for a few hours, so back to sleep I go.

* * *

**Puck POV**

Seeing Santana passed out really messed me up in the head. These damn girls are causing me to drink...first Brittany gets attacked or mixed up with a mobster. Wait, not just a mobster but one of the biggest mobsters in the state of New York, and now Santana collapses. After the paramedics take Santana to the hospital to check her out. Quinn breaks down in my arms. I hate seeing my baby cry like this. Quinn is usually super strong, so seeing her broken so much lately is weighing on me. I pick her up and carry her to the couch. I have her straddle me and I just hold her tightly as she sobs into my chest.

"It's ok, Q." I tell her while rubbing her back. "San's tough. There is a reason we call her Satan, she will be fine, baby."

"Why did it take so long for her to wake up?" She cries out.

"Um, well San is bourgeois, she has marble floors in a freakin condo, that shit probably hurt like hell when she passed out." I reason.

"What if she had a heart attack?" Quinn asked while sniffling.

I laugh. "You have to calm down baby, come on now." I lean back and relax into the couch while I rub her thighs as she hugs her tighter. "Santana is more than healthy, she didn't have a heart attack." I lean her back so I can look in her eyes. I smile softly at her before kissing gently on the lips. "Calm down, Q."

She leans back on me and hugs me tighter. "Are we going to the hospital?'

I nod. "Of course." I begin to massage her lower back. "I need you to calm down first, you can't go and you're all wound up."

"I know." She says sadly. "She's my best friend, Puck."

"I know she is, and you are hers, and right now she needs you strong." I tell her while kissing the top of her head.

"Ok." She says sadly while getting up.

"That's my girl." I tell her as i stand up and pull her into another hug. We stand in silence for a few minutes as I just hold her until she lets out a deep sigh, and I know she is ready. "I'm going to put my jeans back on, meet me down at my truck."

She stands on her tip toes and kisses me. "Thanks, Noah."

I wink at her, "You're welcome, baby."

I run back to the guestroom and slip my jeans and boots on and make my way back through the condo to leave when I see an envelope with some paper laying out on the floor. I pick it up and slide the papers back in before I toss it on the counter. Something pulls me back and I open the envelope.

"Shit!" I yell out as I run out the condo and downstairs.

I drop Quinn off and tell her I will pick her back up when she is ready, and to just call me. I speed to Marco's house and bang on his door frantically before he finally opens up.

"What the fuck! It's like 10am on a Saturday." He says while scratching his stomach and rubbing his eyes.

I push him into his apartment and quickly close the door.

"Brittany is in more trouble than we thought." I tell him while pouring myself a shot of whisky and quickly knocking it back.

"What do you mean?" Marco asks while pouring himself a shot.

I toss the envelope at him. "She owes him money."

He quickly opens the envelope. "Shit..." He knocks back the shot and sighs. "Where did this come from?"

"It was in Santana's condo." I tell him.

"So they found her?" Marco says slowly.

I nod. "They found her."

"Wait...what is this picture?" Marco asks as he pulls out a photograph.

"What picture?" I ask him quickly.

"You didn't see this shit, Puck?" He asks while covering his mouth.

I shake my head as he hands me the picture. Upon first glance I stand up and run to the bathroom and throw up.

* * *

**BRITTANY POV**

Santana has been asleep for a really long time; she went to sleep after dinner, which she complained about the entire time. In her defense, it did look pretty gross. I want to go get her a bag of chips or something because I know she is starving, or at least she will be when she wakes up. I sit in one of the chairs next to the bed and just stare at her, as my thoughts start to run away with me.

It's crazy how different situations and instances in life came bring people together. Before a day or two ago, I haven't seen or talked to Santana in years, aside from Facebook. I have followed her career though. I would stream her radio show through my phone no matter where I was in the world. If I was overseas, I would set my alarm so I could wake up and hear it, no matter that time of night. I know that sounds creepy, but it was my way of keeping her close to me, I guess. It almost felt like she was talking right to me. I was so proud of her; she was talking to and meeting all these big celebrities, she fit in perfectly. I always knew she was destined for greatness, even if she didn't always see it in herself sometimes.

When she opened her restaurant, Rachel emailed everyone the video of the ribbon cutting ceremony at her grand opening. I saved it to my phone and would watch it just to see her smile. She was so happy that day, and God she looked so beautiful. I still have the video in my phone. I would watch it whenever I was having a stressful day. Seeing Santana happy has always made me happy.

Santana's voice has always been permanently embedded in my thoughts too. When I was locked in that small room, her voice was the only thing that kept me sane….the only thing that kept me from wanting to kill myself some nights, as I laid on the cold hard ground in that tiny dark room.

The first time I heard Santana's voice in my head was one of the first nights I was locked in the cold room.

_I was lying on the ground on top of the dirty towel I was given to sleep on. I was half sleep and half going out of my mind. I had given up hope at this point. I lost hope that anyone would save me; I lost hope of ever getting out of this room._

_I laid there staring into space, thinking of all the good memories I had in the past. I remembered winning Nationals for Glee, my first official date with Santana, the first time we made love, her graduation night. I was startled from my thoughts by two deep voices outside the door._

_"Come on in Tony, this one here is a good time, Vinny said, I hear she is nice and flexible."_

_"You sure Vinny is ok with this, Angelo? I don't want problems tonight."_

_"Don't worry, she knows better than to back talk now. Vinny taught her a lesson the other day for poppin off at the mouth… a good back hand fixes everything."_

_I heard the talking from outside the door get closer and quickly crawled into the corner, hoping maybe they wouldn't see me in the shadows. I heard the keys fiddling in the door lock. My breath hitched as my stomach did a somersault._

_Two large men came in the room. I whimpered slightly. Big mistake, a big mistake that caused me to get kicked in the stomach._

_"No talking!" One of the men yelled out. "Shut up fuck up and take that pretty little skirt off._

_My stomach hurt too bad to even move, so I laid motionless._

_"What the fuck is wrong with her, Angelo?" The other man snapped. "This one don't listen….she don't listen at all." Now he kicked me in the stomach._

_"Take the damn skirt off now!"_

_I held my stomach and coughed up blood into my hand as I began to wheeze from the pain._

_"Just take the damn skirt off ya self, Tony, we don't have much time."_

_One of the men then leaned down and ripped my skirt off and opened my legs wide. I shrieked from the pain, which earned me a backhand, causing me to hit my face on my wall as everything slowly became black._

_I woke back up sometime later and saw my usual meal of a bottle of water and a sleeve of crackers next to my head. I was in too much pain to move, everything hurt, my head, my stomach, and the worst pain came from my vagina. It was throbbing and every little motion or movement from my thighs or legs felt like I was tearing myself in two._

_I contemplated trying to use the towel to hang myself when I heard Santana's voice._

_**Brit Brit, don't you dare kill yourself**_

_I lifted my head and looked around. "San?" I said through tears. "Sanny, are you here?"_

_**I'm always with you, Brit. You are strong baby, you will get through this, hold on.**_

_"Please come save me." I said softly as I passed out from exhaustion._

That was just one of many nights that I cried and begged for San to come find me or rescue me. She never did come and find me but I heard her voice constantly and it made me never want to give up. She would always tell me to be strong; Santana always did encourage me and tell me how smart I was. She was the first person to ever call me a genius and honestly mean it. Truthfully, if I didn't hear her voice in my head, I don't know if I would be alive right now.

Puck came and picked Quinn up a little while ago, they brought me a bag of clothes, and some dinner, which was really nice.

I get up to find a vending machine when Santana softly calls my name.

"Brit? Where are you going?" Santana said softly while waking up.

"Just to the vending machine, I thought you might be hungry." I tell her.

"I'm okay." She says while scooting to sit up a little. "You don't need to get me food."

"Ok." I reply while sitting back down.

"Come here, Brit." She says softly while patting the bed next to her.

I walk over to her and sit down on the edge of the bed. She raises her hand wipes my cheek. "Why are you crying?"

I quickly turn my head and wipe away my tears and sniffle.

"Brit…" Santana whispers. "P-please tell me what's wrong."

"I'm ok." I tell her with a weak smile.

She shakes her head. "No you aren't, baby." She reaches over and grabs my hand. "What's happened to you, Brit?" She starts. "You're different, this isn't my Brit Brit, your eyes don't sparkle quite as bright, and your smile isn't as radiant as I know it can be."

A tear slides down my face. "I can't tell you." I whisper.

"Why not?"

"I just can't yet." I tell her.

"Ok…" She says softly. "Give me a hug." She opens her arms and I lean down, hugging her tightly. "I'm here for you, Brittany… whenever you are ready to talk."

"I know." I tell her as more tears escape my eyes and she begins rubbing my back.

"Pass me the ice and a napkin." She says while pointing to the cup of ice on the table. I hand the items to her and watch as she wraps a few ice cubes in the napkin and hands me the cup back. I place it on the table and just watch her, wondering what she is doing.

She opens one of her arms. "Come lay down, Brit."

I take my shoe off and lay down carefully next to her. "I don't want to hurt you or anything." I tell her.

She shook her head. "You won't, I don't want you sleeping in that chair tonight, ok?" She says while placing the ice on the bruise on my face. "Lay in bed with me."

I nod. "Are you sure?"

"I'm positive. If you're in my arms, then I know you are safe." She whispered while moving the ice to a different part of my bruise. "You are safe with me."

"Ok." I said with a small smile.

"I'm going to protect you Brit, as best as I can." She says while kissing me on the forehead. "I promise you."

While I want to believe Santana, she has no idea what she is up against when she finds out just exactly what she's in for. I relax into her embrace as she wraps her arm around my waist and starts to hum softly until I fall asleep.

* * *

**San and Brit get yet a little closer...who will make the first move?**

**Brittany will have more flashbacks on what she has been through in upcoming chapters**

**What do you think the picture was of?**

**What was with the officer with the creepy smile?**

**Who dopped off the envelope?**

**So many questions. Lol**


	8. Chapter 8 - Do You Believe Me

**Super Saturday! I updated all 3 stories…my brain is fried from frantically writing. Lol**

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**I've been slacking on this story….sorry folks :(**

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**Thanks to _Rainbowbright108, Kempokarate12, Aurorazilla, Slapper, Icesk8er, Me, Prettygleekbitch, 15solo, StephaniieC, RJRRAA, Castlewalls7, NayNay1963, Channy2425_, and the Guests for your reviews. Truly appreciated!**

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**Hope I still have your attention and interest :)**

**Anywho...new chapter. Enjoy!**

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**Santana POV**

So, I know I'm being selfish by constantly having Brittany lay on me or with me. While it does seem to relax her and calm her down, it also makes me feel so much better. I spoke truthfully and honestly when I told her I feel better when she is in my arms. I just wish I knew what was wrong. I wish I knew what happened to her. I wish I knew how to help her more. The only thing I can ever think of is to hold her, and she never turns down a cuddle session with me, so maybe I am helping more than I think. Brit fell asleep in my arms a few hours ago; I on the other hand, am still suffering from my insomnia. I can't sleep knowing that Brittany is hurting inside. I know she is trying to stay as strong as possible, but I know her. I can see the pain in her eyes; I can see the hurt in her smile. Whatever happened to her not only hurt her physically, but hurt her emotionally and mentally too.

My biggest solace at this point is the fact that Brittany still trusts me. While it's humbling, it's also nerve wrecking. I mean, what if I let her down some way? What if I'm not able to protect her and keep her as safe as I've promised her? I literally feel like I have a huge weight on my shoulders right now.

Brittany stirred in her sleep and inhaled sharply. I looked down at her and rub her arm to make sure she's okay. She exhales slowly and cuddles closer to me, nestling her face in my neck while wrapping her arm around my waist. I kiss her on the forehead softly before closing my eyes and sighing. I think back over the events of the past few days and suddenly remember why I passed out...that damn picture.

The picture was of Brittany. She was bound and gagged, lying naked on what looked like a super dirty and bloody towel. Her body was full of bruises, scratches, and fresh cuts. She looked like she was passed out or asleep... but judging by her physical condition, I'm going to say she was passed out. There were small pools of blood, vomit, and feces all around Brit. There was a man standing next to her holding a knife to her throat. I couldn't see the asshole because only his back was in the picture. I was so grossed out and shook up by the visual that I passed out.

I hear the hospital door creak open, and I assume it's just a nurse, so I keep my eyes closed knowing they will just check my chart and my vitals and leave if I appear to be asleep. I really don't feel like the small talk the nurses try to initiate. The whole "Are you comfortable? Can I get anything else for you? How are you feeling?" Yadda yadda yadda, just doesn't appeal to me. I want to lay here with Brittany and just enjoy the quiet, well aside from the heart monitor beeping, but I guess if it stops…. then my life stops. Since I'm not ready to die, I will deal with the beeping.

The person walks in slowly and a chill flows through my body for some reason. I shiver slightly and wiggle closer to Brittany. They seem to walk in a circle around the room. Their shoes, or should I say the boots they are wearing, sound heavy and unsettling. I hear them pick up my chart off the end of the bed and flip through the pages. I start to relax as I assume it's a nurse; maybe she or he didn't change into work shoes or something yet. They then come to Brittany's side of the bed. I turn my head to hide my face in her hair and slightly open one eye.

They take their hand and ghost over Brittany's face tucking her hair behind her ear before kissing her on the temple. She must have assumed it was me because she holds me tighter, as she hums slightly, and kisses me gently on the neck while exhaling in contentment. My breath hitches at the sensation her unconscious kiss gives me as once again, fire flashes through my body. I'm such a sucker for a sweet lady kisses on my neck, especially when they come from Brittany.

The figure then comes around to my side of the bed and trails a finger down my arm leaving a strand of goosebumps behind. It takes everything for me not to completely lose my shit and scream. They place a note on my lap and walk out of the room. I discreetly turn my head and see a tall man in a long black trench coat leaving the room. Once I'm sure that he is gone, I quickly sit up and shakily pick up the letter while I let out the breath I was holding for the past couple minutes.

I start to open the letter and read it when Brittany stirs and wakes up. I quickly take the letter and stick it under my pillow.

"You're shaking." She says softly while rubbing my arm. "Are you okay? Should I call the nurse?"

I nod quickly. "I'm ok, um, I'm just a little cold."

She frowns. "I'm laying on the cover, sorry." She says while lifting her body up to slide the cover down from underneath her.

I start to lie back down but sit back up quickly. "Let's get out of here, Brit." I say while swinging my legs over the side of the bed.

"What?" She asked while sitting up straight as well.

"W-we need to leave, like now." I tell her softly, yet sternly.

She doesn't move, she looks beyond scared actually. I take a deep breath and grab her hand. "I won't be able to rest here, I can't get comfortable, and I feel all better now." I tell her with a smile. "Won't you feel more comfortable in a real bed and not this hospital crap?"

She shrugs. "Maybe."

"We can cuddle better in a bigger bed." I say shyly. "I mean, if you want to cuddle, not that you have to cuddle with me, or like I'm forcing you to cuddle."

She laughed. "You're rambling Sanny, are you sure you're ok?"

I take a deep breath and nod. "Let's just go Brit, ok?" I plead.

"Can you just leave the hospital like this?" She asks nervously.

I nod and stand up slowly, ok so I don't feel as great as I pretend I am, I'm actually kind of dizzy and my head still hurts like hell, but we have to leave. I walk over to the closet and pull my clothes out and start to get dressed.

"I'm not in a life threatening state so I can self discharge; I'm coherent so it will be fine." I tell her as I slip my shoes on. "Did Quinn bring you my purse and my phone?"

Brittany nods and stands up and crutches her way over to her stuff in the chair. She reaches in the duffle bag that Quinn dropped off earlier and pulls out my purse.

"Great, you ready?" I ask her while slinging the duffle bag over my shoulder. I wince and stumble a little backwards. I close my eyes to steady myself and take a deep breath before opening them slowly and being met with deep blue eyes staring at me.

"Are you sure you're okay?" She asks quickly.

"Yeah, I'm fine, Brit." I tell her with a smile. I run back to the bed and quickly pull the letter from underneath the pillow and slip it in my back pocket. I also stuff the duffel bag with the extra hospital gowns that are in the closet. "Here, give me a hug before we leave."

She smiles and moves one crutch to the side as I wrap my arms around her waist tightly and hug her. "Now I'm really fine." I tell her with a smile while winking at her.

After I sign papers to discharge, to which the nurse gave me a long drawn out lecture, I lead Brittany outside and we quickly catch a cab, one of the perks of living in New York. I tell the cab to take us to Trump Towers.

"Why aren't we going to your house?" She asks nervously.

I wanted to tell her because whoever is looking for her found her, but I decide against it for now. "I want to treat you to a little vacation." I say with a shrug.

She smiles and looks out of the window as we ride the rest of the cab ride in silence. I want to relax, but I can't because the words on that piece of paper are bouncing around my mental.

_You can't hide from me, Brittany Susan Pierce….I will always own you. – 7 Star_

We pull up to the hotel and I pay the cab driver quickly and get out of the car before helping Brittany out. After we check in to a junior suite, I go to the gift shop and buy us some sweatpants and hoodies, so we have extra clothes to wear. I also buy us a few pairs of pajamas, and some t-shirts, and undergarments. Up in the room, I order up some room service for us and text Quinn, letting her know where we were before heading back out to the living room portion where Brittany was.

She was standing at the window looking out quietly. I walked up slowly and stood by her. "Isn't the view gorgeous?" I say softly as I share at the view from the 16th floor with her.

"Yeah, New York truly is the city that never sleeps." She says with a small chuckle while gazing out at the city, now lit with lights from cars, trucks, street lights, banners, and more.

"I know it's late, but I ordered us a little food, if you're hungry." I tell her while resting my hands on the windowsill and sighing out in contentment. As crazy as it sounds the hustle and bustle of New York has always seemed to calm me down.

"Thanks." She replied. "Do you want to tell me the real reason we rushed out of the hospital now?" She asked while turning her head to face me. "Your dad is a doctor, so you know how risky it was for you to leave the hospital."

"It's only risky if you are seriously hurt Brit, I just passed out earlier, not a big deal." I tell her.

"You hit your head, though." She says softly.

"My head is pretty hard." I wink at her. "The nurse gave me some pills in case I wake up with a major headache or something."

She doesn't say anything at first. She just stares at me, her eyes piercing mine. "What's the real reason, Santana?" I looked down to avoid her gaze. I've never been able to lie to Brittany, especially not with those gorgeous blue eyes looking deep into my eyes, into my heart, into my soul. She slides her fingers on mine. "He found me, didn't he?" She asks just above a whisper.

"Yeah…." I reply quietly while leaning my head on her shoulder. "Yeah, he did, Brit."

"What happens now?" She asks shakily.

"I do everything in my power to keep you safe." I tell her. "I promise you, I will do _everything_ I can to keep you safe, Brittany." I lift my head up and look at her. I slowly turn her head to look at me. "Do you believe me?"

She nods quickly.

"Good." I tell her with a small smile as I lean up and kiss her softly on the tip of her nose. "We are in this together now."

She nods slightly as unshed tears fill her eyes. I quickly grab her and hug her as she breaks down sobbing. I hold her tight and rub her back until she calms down. I lead her over to the couch and we sit down. She immediately cuddles into my side, wrapping her arm around my waist.

"I'm scared, Sanny." She whispers while laying her head on my shoulder.

"Honestly Brit, I am too, sweetheart." I tell her while her rubbing her side. "I am too, but we will get through this. I need you to tell me what happened, Brit. I need to know, so I can help you."

She starts to answer when there is a knock on the hotel door, her body tenses up and she starts to shake.

"It's probably just room service." I say calmly.

I kiss her on the forehead and get up to answer the door. It was indeed room service, so I tip the guy and grab the tray from him. I lock the door and come back and set the tray on the table and sit back on the couch next to Brit.

"Are you hungry?" I ask her.

She shakes her head. "Not really, sorry to waste your money."

"They're salads…not a waste of money. Plus, we can always eat them tomorrow if we want." I tell her. "I'll put them in the fridge." I get up and rub my head as I start to feel slightly dizzy again. I quickly grab the tray and pick up the two salads and put them away.

"It's 10pm." Brittany asked. "What are we supposed to do now?" She asks while looking around.

I didn't really think of that. Normally at this time, I would be doing paperwork or something for my restaurant or Quinn would be over and we would be drinking and goofing off.

"Well, I guess if you're tired we can just go to sleep." I say lamely. "Or we can talk for a little bit."

"Can we just watch a little TV instead?" She asks me.

"Sure, Brit." I tell her. "Why don't we get showered and comfy first?"

* * *

**Brittany POV**

I knew something was wrong the second Santana wanted to leave the hospital. She had fear in her eyes and she was really fidgety. I reluctantly went along with her plan and we ended up at Trump Tower hotel.

After we showered and changed into the pajamas that San bought from downstairs, we were on the couch in the living room portion of the suite, watching TV. My head was all over the place, it was like I couldn't think clearly at all. So many memories, painful memories, were bouncing through my head. If Vinny found me, would he kidnap me and take me back to that little cold, dark room? Would he rape me again? Would he beat me again? Would I be starved for days again? I shudder at the thought as I glance over at San.

My thoughts then turn to her; she's been so patient and comforting, and understanding that I don't want to leave her side. She's been more than amazing to me the past couple days. I really don't know where I would be if she wasn't home that night, or didn't answer her door.

I was so lost in my thoughts I didn't hear Santana calling my name, but I felt it when she rested her warm hand on my bare thigh.

"Brit?"

I turned and looked and her, she has so much concern in her tired eyes. I gave her a weak smile.

"Are you okay?" She asked while scooting a little closer to me.

I shrug. "I'm okay." I whisper out as my gaze drops down to her lips. I would love to feel Santana's lips again. Well, she has kissed me on my cheek and on my forehead several times in the past couple days, but it's not the same. She was licking her lips slowly, like she normally does when she is deciding what to say next. I know she is talking but the only thing I'm focused on is her lips right now. They are so damn distracting.

"You look beautiful." I blurt out suddenly.

"Thanks, Brit." She whispers shyly. "So do you."

I shake my head. "Not with this bruise."

"Hey." She says sternly. "We have talked about this, Brittany. That bruise doesn't define you." She ghosts her fingers over my bruise. "I don't want to hear you mention it again, ok?" She says softly. "You are beautiful Brittany, never forget that."

"Your girlfriend is lucky." I tell her softly.

She raises an eyebrow at me. "Girlfriend?" She shakes her head. "I don't have a girlfriend, Brit."

"Oh." I whisper out as my stomach flips and I swear I feel butterflies. I'm suddenly nervous for some reason. Santana sees my nerves and scoots even closer.

"Do you want to talk, Brit?" She asks quietly while grabbing my hand lightly and holding it in her lap. She soothingly rubs circles on the top of my hand with her thumb and I feel my heart start to melt.

I shake my head quickly. "Not yet, I'm sorry."

She quickly shakes her head. "Don't apologize, it's ok. Talk when you are ready, sweetheart." She gives me a small smile as she picks up the remote and flips through the channels. "I hope Iron Chef is on." She says with a smile.

We watch some cooking show for over an hour, when Santana falls asleep. She is curled in a ball in the corner of the couch. She's leaning on the back of the couch with her side and her head keeps bobbing. It's seriously the cutest thing ever. I stretch out my leg and lean forward and grab her softly. She instantly tenses and gasps.

"It's just me, San." I whisper out to her.

She turns her head sleepily and looks me in the eye and nods. "Here, lay back on me." I tell her while pulling her flush on my chest.

"I don't want to hurt you." She mumbles out as she exhales against my chest.

"You could never hurt me." I tell her while stroking her hair. I slowly lift my injured ankle and wrap it around her legs so it's resting on top, since I'm supposed to keep it elevated.

Santana wiggles a little and wraps her arms around my waist. "Good night, baby." She mumbles out again sleepily.

My breath hitches at the term of endearment and I exhale slowly. "Good night."

I jerk awake when one of those stupid emergency tests comes on the TV. I look down at Santana, she is still sound asleep on my chest, and she's now facing the back of the couch. I rub her back softly before I gently slide from under her to turn the TV off and grab a drink of water.

I turn the TV off, and limp to the kitchenette, grabbing a bottle of water. I quickly drink half the bottle when I hear Santana frantically calling my name.

"B-brit? Brittany!" She calls out shakily. "B-b-brit!"

I limp back quickly. "What's wrong?"

She is sitting up looking around and sighs out in relief when she sees my face. "I woke up and you were gone, I thought something happened to you." She rushed out quickly.

I shake my head. "I was just getting some water."

She nods. "I'm sorry I just freaked out." She says while covering her face in embarrassment.

I laugh softly. "It's okay, I would have probably reacted the say way if I woke up in the dark and you weren't by my side, too." We lock eyes and something flows through my body, something I can't explain. We stare at one another for what seems like hours to me, but it's really just a few seconds.

"L-let's up go to bed." She stutters out. "Ummm, I think this is a sofa bed, I can sleep out here and you can take the bedroom."

"We can share the bed, Sanny." I tell her quietly, silently hoping she accepts my subtle cuddle invitation.

"Ok, um, here, let me help you." Santana tells me. She stands up quickly and wraps her arm around my waist as I put my arm around her neck.

Once we get in the bed, she cuddles close to me wrapping her arm around my waist and holding me tight. We lay facing one another, our faces inches apart. She slowly starts rubbing slow circles on my back and I get lost in her brown eyes. My eyes once again flicker down to her lips. I can't take it anymore, I have to kiss her. I know this is a risk, and I hope it doesn't make her get mad at me but I close my eyes and lean forward, pecking her softly on the lips.

When I open my eyes to look at her, her eyes are widened. "I-I-I'm sorry." I say quickly while trying to scoot back away from her.

* * *

**SANTANA POV**

I will admit I freaked out when I woke up in a hotel room, that's pitch black mind you, and I didn't see Brit. The note, the picture, and the guy in the hospital all have me kind of spooked right now.

We are laying in bed now, facing each other and I'm staring at Brit, just staring at her. I'm remembering how much I love this girl in front of me, how happy I am she is back in my life, no matter the circumstances, I'm just happy to be lying this close to her again, sharing space, air, hell life with her.

I'm about to close my eyes when suddenly she places a feather light kiss on my lips. My whole body felt like it was fire, it took me by surprise and my eyes widened in amusement. Brittany started apologizing and tried to move back. I quickly grab her.

"Why are you apologizing?" I ask softly.

"I just shouldn't have kissed you." She says sadly.

I frown slightly. "Why? I didn't mind it."

"You made a face." She whispers.

I shake my head. "It just took me by surprise, that's all. I liked it, though." I tell her truthfully. She starts to smile shyly. I slowly lift my hand and cup her face stroking my thumb over her cheek.

"Come back close." I whisper out.

She wiggles back closer and rests her hand on my hip. I lean forward, resting my forehead on hers. I smile at her before I close the gap between us and capture Brittany's lips again. I feel my heart rate speed up, I feel like the 14 year old Santana that first kissed Brittany, for the first time, in my bedroom while the two of us watched a movie.

I slowly mold our lips together while stroking her face gently, I feel her squeeze my hip and begin kissing me back. When the kiss breaks, I kiss her softly on the nose and smile at her.

"You don't ever have to apologize for kissing me." I tell her with a wink.

"Your lips are still just as soft as in high school." She says with a smile.

"I-I still love you, Brit, I always have, and I always will." I tell her. She just stares at me. I cover my mouth, realizing what I just said, hoping I didn't freak her out.

She smiles brightly and moves my hand before kissing me again. I lick the crease of her lips, asking for entrance, and she parts her lips. I slip my tongue in slowly and my body melts into her embrace.

Her mouth is so warm and inviting, I feel like I'm going to explode from pleasure. I let my tongue roam and explore territory it was once so familiar with. She lets out a small moan, and I wrap my arm around her, pulling her impossibly closer while stroking her hair.

We only stop when we once again need air. "I still love you, too." She whispers out.

"Good." I tell her with a smile as she lays her head on my shoulder.

"Sanny?"

"Yeah, Brit?"

"I'm ready to tell you what happened." She whispers.

"A-are you sure?" I ask as she sits up.

She nods. "Yeah, you should know how much danger we're in now."

I swallow thickly and sit up as well. "Ok, no matter how bad it is, I'm not leaving your side, Brit… Keep that in mind." I lean over and kiss her softly again. Being able to just kiss Brittany freely again is like the best thing that has happened to me in years.

She sighs shakily and looks down. I reach over and grab her hand. "Take your time, we have all night, okay?" I tell her.

She nods. "It started when I first moved to New York….."

* * *

**Yes you can hate me for the cliffhanger. Lol.**

**Brittany tells what happened to her in the next chapter.**

**A Brittana kiss...perfect moment right?**

**Thoughts on the chapter?**


	9. Chapter 9 - I Would Die For You

**Thank you ttandme69, cheekymonkey212, castlewalls7, deb 92, xenalin, Yum Prettygleekbitch, Me, Adrimarie97, NayNay1963, Paigeheartsglee12, desshaje, icesk8er, Aurorazilla, RJRRAA, rainbowbright108, devilgrrl182, SR4SC, Lily, Daphne4969 and all the anon GUEST for your reviews.**

**Rainbowbright108 – I will try not to disappear for weeks at a time again. Lol **

**Aurorazilla – Exploding in to rainbows and glitter sounds pretty damn awesome. :)**

**NayNay1963 – You know I love a cliffhanger. Lol**

**XenaLin – I will try to sprinkle as much fluff as possible in the story to break up the angst.**

* * *

**_italics are flashbacks_  
**

* * *

**Brittany POV**

When Santana confessed that she still loved me, my heart swelled twice in size, I felt something I haven't felt in year…. I can't quite describe it, but it's a feeling that I only get when Santana is around. I decided I finally need to tell her what happened to me, I just don't want her to look at me differently or feel really sorry for me. I already know she feels bad for me now, but I don't want to make it worse.

I close my eyes and slowly open them while exhaling deeply.

"It all started when I first moved to New York." I start slowly. Santana can sense my hesitation and she slowly rubs circles on the top of my hand with her thumb. It's such a small action but it calms me down.

"I saved a bunch of money from touring and used it to rent out a small dance studio over on 5th. The studio had a small apartment over it, so I moved in there. I didn't need a car because I lived and worked seconds away from each other." I say with a smile.

"Totally cool." Santana replies with a smile, as she slowly massages my hand. I know it sounds weird, but it's so relaxing and soothing.

"So there was this adorable little girl in my class, Rosa Moreli. Her dad owns a chain of Italian restaurants or something..." I say with a shrug.

"Vinnys?" Santana asked while raising her eyebrow.

I quickly nod, "Yeah, he owns those. Well, we came in one day to pick up his daughter from class and he uh, started flirting with me." I whisper. "I'm so stupid I didn't even realize that he was flirting with me." I feel Santana squeeze my hand tightly.

"Hey, you are _not_ stupid, Brittany." She says sternly.

I look away quickly to avoid her gaze. "Well, I didn't even realize he was flirting with me." I correct myself. "He started to come in every morning and bring me treats, like flowers, and candy. Oh, and he would bring me a latte from Starbucks, too." I remember and add quickly.

"He would hang around the studio and we would talk until my morning class started, then he would leave. I thought we were friends, because only a friend would bring you coffee and treats in the morning, right?" I ask her.

"Umm, y-yeah, I guess a friend would." She says softly.

I nod. "That's what I thought, too." I pause and take a deep breath. "Well, he asked me out on a date, but I told him no thanks. I mean Vinny is good looking and all, like he wears really nice suits and his shoes were always shiny." I nod while thinking to myself and picturing Vinny in my head. "He was really persistent and would ask every day, he would send dozens and dozens of flowers to the studio, so one day I finally accepted and told him yes." I glance up at Santana briefly. She has a blank stare on her face, but when we lock eyes, she gives me a reassuring smile and nod to continue.

"We went to dinner and had a great time, he took me to his fancy steakhouse. I was telling him how I was hoping to get more students enrolled so I could pay down some of the loan I borrowed and hire a staff. He said he would help me come up with a business plan on how I could do that. I don't really know about stuff like that, so I was happy he offered to help me." I pause for a long while.

"Brit? Are you okay?" She asks softly.

"Um, I think I need some water." I whisper.

She smiles at me. "I will grab you a bottle, be right back." She kisses me on the forehead before getting out of bed and quickly leaving the room.

I sigh and run my hands through my hair quickly, hoping to calm my nerves before she comes back. She returns a few moments later with the bottle of water. She holds it out to me before climbing back in bed and sitting down Indian style again. I open the bottle and take a few sips.

"I'm sorry, I'm nervous for some reason." I tell her.

"It's ok, um, here let's try this." She sits against the headboard and opens her legs in a V, before patting the space between her legs. "Come lean on me."

"Ok." I nod and crawl over to her. I sit between her legs and lean back so I'm flush on her chest. I feel her heartbeat in my back as she wraps her arms around my waist and holds me. She rests her chin on my shoulder and I can feel her breath on my neck. I start to relax.

"You okay now?" She asks.

"Yeah, thanks. So the next day he shows up with coffee, flowers, and a donut really early in the morning like always. We eat breakfast together and he suddenly pulls out a check for $50,000 and hands it to me." I feel Santana's hands tighten around my waist before they relax. I glance up at her, and see that her eyes are widened.

"That's a lot of money to accept from a person, Brit." She whispers.

"I know, I told him I couldn't accept it." I say quickly. "But he told me if it made me feel better then I could consider it a loan and pay him back in installments. I agreed to that, and he said he would draw up a payment agreement and I told him that worked better. That night he comes up to my apartment, and I offered to cook him dinner as a thank you. At the end of dinner he pulls out a contract and hands it to me. I read it over and noticed I would be paying him $80,000 back." I say while shaking my head still in disbelief.

"I told him I couldn't sign the contract because that was too much money to pay back, it would take me forever to pay back $80,000, Sanny." I tell her.

"That's bullshit Brit, $30,000 in interest is ridiculous." She snapped. "He set you up Brit."

"He was being nice." I tell her while shaking my head.

"No, Brit." She takes a deep breath. "He set you up baby, to try to get more money out of you."

"But..." I say slowly.

"He took advantage of you Brit." She says sadly.

"I know, I told him I couldn't accept it and I handed him the check back. He wouldn't take it and he g-got really angry." I take a deep breath. "H-he stood up and slapped me so hard I fell out of my chair."

I heard Santana gasp and I felt her chest cave in slightly as she held me tighter. "Brit..." She breathed out with a shaky voice.

"He, uh, he said that since I took the check that morning I had to pay him back. I told him I didn't cash it or anything but he wouldn't take it back. I slowly stood back up, but my head hurt so bad, Sanny, it was kind of hard to see straight. I reached for my purse and grabbed the check out to hand him back but he slapped me again." I whispered. "I kept making him mad, I guess."

Santana sniffled a little and hugged me tighter. "You didn't do anything wrong Brittany, okay? You didn't do anything to deserve get slapped, baby. Remember that." She choked out through tears. She pulled me back closer to her and held my hands tightly around my waist. I nodded that I understood and closed my eyes tightly leaning back as I remembered how much it hurt when Vinny slapped me repeatedly.

"You can stop if you need to." She says softly while nestling her face between my neck and shoulder. I can feel the soft puffs of air from her breathing on my neck and I sigh softly, I don't know if it's in contentment, or assurance, or nerves, but something about her breathing that close in my personal space shakes me a little. "We can take a break from talking about it."

"No, it's ok, that's not the really bad part." I tell her sadly. I sit up and turn to face her. "P-romise me you won't judge me or think of me any differently." I plead before continuing.

She leans forward and kisses me softly on the lips and then all over the bruise on my face. "I would never judge you, Brit, don't worry about that, sweetheart." She tells me genuinely.

"Ok, so two weeks later I'm at the studio stretching when Vinny shows up…."

* * *

_"Do you have my $80,000, Brittany?" Vinny asked in his usual deep scratchy voice._

_I shake my head in confusion. "I don't have $80,000… I can give you your check back, I didn't cash it. See." I say quickly while pulling the check out of my purse and holding it up to him._

_He turns around slowly and goes and locks the door to the studio, he then pulls the shades down._

_"W-what are you doing, Vinny?" I ask nervously._

_"That check is yours now, you need to give me $80,000." He replies smugly while walking towards me._

_I shake my head sadly. "You know I don't have $80,000, though."_

_"Well, I guess we have a little problem then, now don't we?" He says angrily. "I don't take kindly to people playing with my money."_

_"I, I'm not playing with your money. I-I-I have your check, you can have it back, we can forget this ever happened." I say quickly when I notice the anger in his eyes._

_"You owe me $80,000 Brit, and I want my fuckin money!" He yelled out. I got so scared that I jumped back and stumbled into the counter._

_He ran over to me and slapped again, this time I hit my head on the counter. I feel really dizzy and then I slowly drift into unconsciousness._

* * *

"Then, then…." I take a deep breath to settle myself. I look up at Santana at try to give her a weak smile. I hope she smiles back so I can gain some strength from her. She does smile back but it doesn't reach her eyes, it barely reaches her mouth. Her deep gorgeous dimples don't appear like they usually do when she smiles. "Then, he must have kidnapped me, I don't really remember, though." I tell her sadly. "All I remember is waking up in a small dark room."

"My god, Brit." Santana whispers out.

I can tell she wants to cry but she is trying hard not to. She keeps blinking really fast and taking deep breaths. I just hope she doesn't pass out again.

* * *

_I wake up in a dark room. I try to sit up quickly, which was a bad idea, but stop and wince in pain as my head starts spinning really fast and I throw up. After a small coughing fit to catch my breath, I slowly blink to adjust my eyes to the darkness and realize I'm not in my studio anymore. I don't know where I am, actually. I'm laying on a towel, and to the side of me is a sleeve of saltine crackers and a bottle of water. I try to stand up by my leg hurts so I crawl over to the corner and try to pull myself up. I balance on foot leg and look around. I'm in a small, completely empty square room._

_"Where am I?" I whisper out to myself._

_I slide back down to the floor and look over myself. My clothes are ripped and torn, and my arms and legs are full of scratches and cuts. I reach my hand up to touch my head, which is throbbing. I feel a thick, wet substance and quickly look at my hand._

_"I-I'm bleeding." I whisper out again, afraid to talk any louder. I reach down and tear a piece of my skirt off, since it's torn anyways. I hold it up to my head to try to stop the bleeding but it soaks right through. I feel tears stinging the back of my eyes, and as soon as I blink, they come spilling out. At this point I don't know if I'm crying from pain, fear, nerves, or sadness._

_Suddenly, I hear a loud bang outside the door, and I lose my breath. I hug myself and fold into a small ball, hoping to make myself invisible._

_"Dammit, pick up the keys Tony, you fuckin moron."_

_No, that's Vinny's voice. Tears are now flooding out of my eyes as the door opens. Vinny walks in and slams the door behind him._

_"We need to have a little talk, Brittany." He growled out. "You owe me money, and I will get my money one way or another."_

_"I, I, I tried to give you the check back." I stutter out._

_"You owe me $80,000!" He yelled out while slamming his hand on the wall._

_I flinch and shake my head. "I don't have that much."_

_"Well then, let's start working off your debt." He replies with a smirk while unbuttoning his pants and taking them off._

_He's now standing in front of me completely naked from the waist down, he has his belt in his hand. "Get to work!" He yells out._

* * *

"No, no, no." Santana cries out softly while closing her eyes tightly. "Baby….." She whispers.

* * *

_I shake my head. "N-no."_

_He then strikes me with the belt across my face. I cover my face with my hands as I cry. He then continues to hit me over and over with the belt._

_"Get to work, Brittany!" He screams out._

_I shriek in pain and slowly stand on my knees to do what he demands._

* * *

"You can skip the details." She says quickly as she opens her eyes and tears come cascading out. "You shouldn't have to relive that, I don't want you to relive that. "

I nod. "O-okay." I wipe her tears away and then tightly hold her hands again.

"I'm sorry Brit, I'm so sorry I wasn't there to save and protect you, baby." She said through tears, leaning forward and hugging me tightly while running her fingers through my hair. "You didn't deserve that, Brit… no one deserves that."

I melt into her embrace as I break down. Just thinking of the memory makes me sick to my stomach. I suddenly get up and run to the bathroom.

* * *

**Santana POV**

The whole Brittany was telling me the story of what happened to her I went from feeling sad to rage, back and forth. One minute I wanted to fucking kill Vinny and the next minute I want to just hold Brittany in my arms and never let her go.

I tried my hardest not to cry, I really really did. I knew Brit needed me to be strong for her while she told the story, but I just couldn't help it. No deserves to be made to perform oral sex or get raped, which I'm assuming is what happened next. A bottle of water and a fucking sleeve of crackers to eat?! I swear to God if I ever come across Vinny….I. WILL. KILL. HIM.

I'm holding Brit, as she breaks down crying, when she suddenly jumps up and runs to the bathroom. I get up quickly and follow her and see her throwing up violently in the toilet.

I quickly sit flush behind her and hold her hair with one hand while rubbing her back with the other. I pepper soft slow kisses to the back of her neck to try and relax her more. Just when I think she is done, her body tenses and she starts throwing up again. This time she is struggling to breath and starts choking a little.

"Relax Brit… you gotta relax and just let it come up." I tell her while rubbing her back. "You can't struggle against it." I feel her start to relax a little more and she stops struggling, but she is still going. When she finally stops I run back to the room and grab the bottle of water, I then wet a towel with cold water.

I sit on the floor and lean against the tub, "Come here, Brit." I say softly while opening my arms.

I open my legs in a V again, so she can lean on my chest; she crawls over weakly and rests her back on my chest. "Try to drink a little." I tell her while opening up the water bottle and handing it to her. She swishes some water around in her mouth and leans forward and spits it out in the toilet. She then leans back into me as I gently wipe her mouth and dab her neck and forehead with the towel.

"Let's call it a night, Brit, we can finish the story tomorrow." I suggest. She nods slowly. "Here, let me help you up." We stand up slowly together. She goes to the sink and pulls out some mouthwash and cleans her mouth up.

I then help her to the bed and we lay down inches away from each other again. "I'm sorry you had to go through that, Brit." I whisper after we lay and stare at each for several minutes.

"Me too." She replies.

I slowly lift my hand to ghost over her face. "So he wants $80,000 from you?"

She nods. "I don't have it, though." She says sadly. "He's going to kill me."

"NO!" I tell her sternly. "I would let him kill me before I let him kill you Brit, you are not going to die. I would die for you, Brit." I tell her seriously. "I would die for you, baby." I repeat while looking in her eyes. "I'm not going to let him hurt you again."

"But I don't have the money." She replies with tears in her eyes.

"Do you still have the check?" I ask her, praying to God, Allah, Buddah, and whatever other higher being is listening that she still has the check.

"Yeah, I do." She replies. "It's in my purse."

"Good, I have the other $30,000 for you." I tell her.

Her eyes widen. "I can't take that much money from you." She says quickly while shaking her head.

"You aren't taking it; I'm giving it to you." I tell her. "I want you alive and safe, so tomorrow when we get back to my condo, we will get everything situated."

"It will take me forever to pay you back." She replies.

"I don't need it back, you being back in my life, alive and safe, is payment enough." I say shyly. I lean forward and kiss her softly on the lips. "Let's get some sleep, okay?"

"Thanks, Sanny." She says softly while cuddling close to my chest.

I sigh and let out a shaky breath while holding her tight and rubbing her back. $30,000 is a little less than total balance in my savings account right now, but I know that I need to use the money to help Brittany out. I know this asshole won't accept the money that easily, but I'm prepared for a fight. I stare at Brittany, like I just really stare at her, wishing I can erase every memory. I wish I could take the pain out of those beautiful blue eyes. When I told her I would die for her I meant it...like I really meant it. So either 7 Star is going to take this $80,000 and walk away or we are in for the fight our our lives. While my head is telling me he will take the money and this will be over; my heart is telling me to get ready to go to war. I close my eyes and try to go to sleep, hoping neither one of us has a nightmare tonight.

* * *

**More of Brittany's story in an upcoming chapter...**


	10. Chapter 10 - Beautiful Nightmare

**Where the heck have you guys been? LOL J/K Im back with a new update, and I promise to update more frequently for here on out.**

**Thanks to Levy, LovinMeSomeGlee, Lex, Jessica, PaigeHeartsglee12, SillyTeaser, Mag01, XenaLin, Lara, RJRRAA, Devilgrrl182, desshaje, Prettygleekbitch, dhez13, rainbowbright108, icesk8er, Channy2425, meshannen04, Deb 92, JustJanie, cheekymonkey212, and all the GUEST reviewers for your lovely feedback. I truly appreciate it.**

**If you haven't already you can check out my other Brittana fics…Forever Friends, Hollywood Living, and A Dollar and A Dream**

* * *

**Santana POV**

I guess the best way to describe last night is as a beautiful nightmare. The beautiful part was reconnecting with Brittany, and not just because of the kiss, although it did help. Kissing Brittany again sent so many emotions through my body all at once. For years I never thought I would actually even see Brittany again, but now, to be laying with her here in bed, no matter the circumstance, is just wow. I kept licking my lips last night trying to soothe the tingling sensation that lingered from kissing her again. It was incredible. Brittany shared something super personal and emotional with me. I could tell by the way her lips quivered and her voice shook that it wasn't an easy story to tell, and then she threw up afterwards so I know it hard for her. The nightmare was the story she told itself, that horrible experience that she decided to relive and tell me reconnected us. It was hard for me to listen to, so I know it was hard for her to tell the story.

I keep thinking over and over in my head what would have happened if I wasn't home to answer the door for Brit? What if I was in the shower and didn't hear the door? Or what if I was sleep? Brit would be somewhere all alone right now. Just the thought of her suffering breaks my heart, no it shatters my heart to pieces.

Brittany was laying cuddled into my chest, as I held her tightly and slowly rubbed her back, not wanting to let her go for any reason. I open my eyes and glance at the clock. 9am. I slept for maybe 30 minutes last night, Brittany tossed and turned, so I spent majority of the night trying to soothe her with soft kisses on her cheeks and forehead, kind of as a reminder that she was safe in my arms. I don't know if she was having a nightmare or just a restless night of sleep, but either way I wanted to make sure she was okay, so I stayed awake.

As my eyes start to adjust to the sunlight peeping in the room, I quickly slam them back shut. My head hurts 10x worse than it did last night. Maybe I hit my head harder than I thought when I passed out. I wanted to get up and grab some aspirin but I didn't want to let Brittany go, and I didn't trust that I wouldn't be dizzy either. So I decided to try to sleep it off for another hour so, so I kissed Brittany softly on the top of the head and closed my eyes, hoping to fall asleep.

My cell phone started to buzz so I slowly untangled myself from Brittany and reached behind me to answer.

**_Hello?_**

_Hey San, how are you feeling?_

**_Honestly Q, I feel like shit, my head is killing me._**

_I figured you weren't thinking clearly when you texted me you left the freakin hospital San. Are you crazy? Have you lost your mind?_

**_If you called to yell at me Quinn, save it, please. I'm beyond tired and my head is pounding, I cant take a lecture right now._**

_Sorry…I'm just worried about you that's all._

**_I know….thanks._**

_How is Brit?_

**_She's ok, she's asleep right now_**

_Ok, that's good. Well I'm coming to pick you both up at noon._

**_Ok, thanks_**

I hung up the phone and rolled back over to cuddle with Brittany again. I felt her shift and stir a little before she exhaled softly on my neck and woke up. She jumped out of bed and ran to the bathroom again.

I sigh as I slowly sit up, yep extremely dizzy, and try to swing my legs off the bed to go check on her. "Brit." I call out after her. "Are you ok?" I go to stand up but that was a terrible idea as I sit down slowly and hold my head in my hands groaning softly. I felt the bed dip behind me and Brittany wrap her arm around my waist and slide super close so that her front was flush with my back. She reached around me and handed me a glass of water and pack of pills I got from the hospital. I quickly take the pills and close my eyes tightly as Brittany rests her head on my shoulder, she slides her hands slowly up and down my sides.

"You need to lay back down." She whispered in my ear as she placed a cold towel on my neck. "Come on San, lean back." She gentled pulled me back to lay down. I nod slowly and lean back quickly turning on my side to face her.

"Good morning." She whispered softly while dabbing the cold towel on my forehead.

"Good morning." I tell her back quickly as I lean forward and softly press our lips together to kiss her. "How do you feel?" I ask her while resting my hand on her hip and squeezing gently.

She shrugged. "Ok, more worried about your head. I heard you on the phone with Quinn; do you want to go back to the hospital?"

I shake my head no, but wince in the process. "I will be ok; Quinn is coming to get us at noon. I think I can sleep it off for a few hours."

Brittany frowned. "This is all my fault."

"What's your fault?" I ask her quickly.

"Everything, your head hurting, you don't sleep ever, just everything, I mess everything up all the time." She said quickly.

I sighed and lifted my hand to cup her cheek. "Brittany, **none** of this is your fault baby, none of it. I want you to tell yourself that every chance you get." I make sure to look her right in the eyes. "Ok?"

She reluctantly nods as I wipe a stray tear away from her eye. "I don't blame you for anything, I swear I don't." I reassure her while pressing our lips together once again and moving my hand slowly from her cheek back down to her hip. Once the kiss breaks I rest my forehead on hers so she can look in my eyes and know I'm telling the truth.

"A-are you sure you want to give me that much money?" She asked shyly.

"I'm positive Brittany, we are going to pay this asshole off, I'm going to invest in your studio, so you can keep teaching, and then life will go on for us." I tell her with a shrug.

"You still want me in your life after this?" She asks slowly.

"Of course I do, why wouldn't I?" I respond.

She shakes her head and shrugs. "I don't know."

"Brit, when I told you I still loved you last night, I absolutely meant it." I say while scooting closer so we are lying on the same pillow. "You were my first love and best friend. I will do whatever it takes to get rid of this situation, so we can start a new life together."

"You were mine too." She says with a small smile.

"I just got you back Brit, I'm never letting you go again. Ever."

I scoot as close to her as possible and nestle my face in her neck. "Let's try to go back to sleep until Q gets here." I whisper out before kissing her neck softly.

"Ok." She replies as she wraps her arm around my waist and sighs out.

"It will be ok Brit, I promise." I tell her as I close my eyes.

* * *

**Puck POV**

"So you are sure you want to do this?" Marco asks me as I flop down in his recliner.

"Do I have any other choice?" I ask him while shrugging.

"Want a beer?" He asks me.

"Naw, I have to meet up with Quinn and she will freak if she smells liquor on me this early." I tell him.

"Ok, cool." He sits down and pulls out a map and lays it on the table. "So there is where Vinny does a lot of his dirty work." He points to a spot on the map. "I say we do a stake out tonight to figure out when everyone leaves for the night, Then a in a few days we can sneak in the warehouse."

I shake my head. "Why are we going in the warehouse?"

"Vinny has a book of everyone that owes him money, it's in the warehouse." Marco states.

"Ok, what good will that do?" I ask him.

"It also lists how he plans to handle the person, some people he flat out kills, others he tortures, and some he just messes with for a number of years." Marco explains.

"What do you mean messes with?" I ask him while sitting up.

"He makes their life hell." Marco says. "He sends people to beat you up, he messes with your car, he drains your bank account, he harasses you, your friends, and your family. It's more of a mental beating. He wants to make you super paranoid."

"So we need to see what he plans to do to Brittany." I figure out. "When we find out then what?"

"Well he's not going to kill her, if he wanted to, he would have done that already, you said you found the picture at Santana's condo right?" Marco asks while taking a long sip of his beer. I nod."So he knows where she is, my guess is he wants to make her life hell until he gets his money back."

"So we need to get the book and see how much she owes him, and what he plans to do to her if he doesn't get it back?" I ask one last time for clarification.

Marco nods. "Once that happens we put phase 2 into play."

I run my hands over my head and sigh. "Alright, what time do we do this stake out?"

"10pm." Marco suggests.

I nod. "Cool, I need that beer now bro."

Marco smirks and tosses a beer at me. "Shit is going to get real Puck, you sure you're up for this, or has being a photographer made you soft?"

"I said I'm in, do I need to kick your ass to prove it?" I ask him while opening my beer and drinking it down quickly.

"There's the Puck I know." Marco says while smiling. "Let's get to work on planning out how to get in the building.

* * *

**Brittany POV**

I woke up from the sounds of Santana's phone vibrating and glanced over at it. I wasn't able to reach over and grab it because Santana and I fell asleep wrapped in each other's arms once again. I love falling asleep in her arms and with her in my arms, it's seriously the best feeling to me. Every time Santana tell she loves me, my heart swells twice its size, mainly because I love her so much back. I love how strong she is for me. I know her head is killing her but she keeps pushing forward to make sure I'm ok. Santana's always been super sweet like that, but she rarely lets her guard down for people to see. Honestly, I'm shocked she let her guard down so quickly for me again.

Santana was cuddled close to me with her arm securely around my waist and her head lying on my chest. I knew she was in pain by how ragged her breathing was. Santana was usually a very sound sleeper, she made absolutely no noise when she slept, unless she was sick or in pain. In that case, her breathing was always a soft wheeze, like she was finally letting out all of the pain in her body.

I took my hand and stroked her hair gently before lightly feeling her forehead to see if she had a fever or anything. Her phone went off again and I sighed because I hated to wake her up since she hasn't been sleeping. I stretched out my arm to grab her phone but I couldn't quite reach it so I just let it vibrate, assuming the person would just leave her a message. I was just about to close my eyes again and try to go back to sleep when there was a knock at the door. As a reflex, a terrible one I'd adapted in recent weeks, I instantly jumped and my body tensed.

Santana must have felt me tense because she stirred and groaned softly but didn't wake up. I closed my eyes tightly while wrapping my other arm around Santana to hug her. She felt me hug her and snuggled closer to me. There was another knock on the door and I started to shake slightly as hot tears poured out of my eyes. What if they found me? What if its Vinny? Are they going to kill me? Oh my God what if they kill Santan?!

Santana stirred again and woke up slowly. She lifted her head slowly off my chest. "Hey, what's wrong?" She asked quickly as I felt her wiping some of my tears away.

I felt like I couldn't move or speak or do anything. I just laid frozen on the bed shaking, with my eyes closed tightly. I felt Santana crawl and lay flush on me. "Look at me Brit." She whispered softly as she slid her hands from my shoulders to my arms and finally grazing my fingertips. I felt her grab my hands and hold them tightly. "Open your eyes baby."

I let out a shaky sigh and opened my eyes slightly.

"It's just me Brit." She said softly. "You're okay." She added while stroking my hands with her thumbs. Just as she said that there was another pounding at the door. Santana frowned and looked towards the direction of the door, she then glanced over at the clock.

"It's probably just Quinn." She said softly. "Stay here, I'll check."

"D-don't leave m-me." I said shakily.

She nodded quickly. "Ok, I won't." She leaned down and kissed me softly. "You are okay Brit. Lemme grab my phone." She reached over and grabbed her phone and laid back on me quickly.

I knew Santana was lying on me to get me grounded in a way, feeling her weight on me, even though she wasn't even heavy at all sorta anchored me down, and let me know she wasn't leaving. It was something about feeling her softly press her weight against me that relaxed me. I quickly wrapped my arms around Santana's waist and held her tight.

I must have been daydreaming because she was shaking me softly and calling my name. "Brittany, Brit."

I blinked twice and shook my head as she wiped some more tears away. "It's just Quinn at the door; she's here to pick us up. Can I go let her in?" She asked softly.

"Yeah." I whispered out softly.

"I promise to come right back." She told me as she slowly got up and went to the answer the door.

I exhaled slowly and quickly grabbed Santana's pillow and hugged it tightly inhaling the remnants of her scent. I closed my eyes and sniffled a little, mainly from embarrassment.

A few minutes later Santana came back in the room and quickly climbed back in bed and snuggled close to me. "I'm back Brit." She whispered while stroking my arm. I slowly opened my eyes and smiled softly when I saw her big brown ones hovering over me. "Ready to go back to my place?"

I looked up at her and nodded. "Yeah." I squeaked out as Quinn walked in the room.

"How are you feeling Brit?" Quinn asked softly. "How's your ankle?"

I saw up slowly and smiled at her. "It's ok, doesn't really hurt too bad anymore. I heal pretty quickly."

We pack up our belongings and head down to Santana's truck. I want to ask why Quinn is driving her truck but I decide to just ignore it. Santana has me sit in the backseat with her. As soon as Quinn begins to pull off Santana slides to the middle and leans her head on my shoulder.

"How's your head?" I whisper to her.

"It's getting better." She responded while grabbing my hand. "Thanks." I glance up and notice Quinn peeping at us in the rearview mirror. She had a weird look on her face, it wasn't anger or sadness, more confusion I guess. I shrug it off and softly lay my head on Santana's.

* * *

**Santana POV**

Once we got home from the hotel I immediately took a shower and changed into some comfy sweats and a big sweatshirt. Brittany decided to finally check her phone for messages and check her email so she went to my office to do that, as Quinn began cooking dinner.

I made a cup of tea and snuggled in a blanket on the couch with my laptop to go over some more resumes for work. Quinn came in and snuggled next to me laying her head on my shoulder momentarily.

"So honestly how are you feeling San?" She asked quietly.

I closed my laptop and sighed. "Honestly, my head hurts like hell still and I still feel a little dizzy. My plan is to get a good night sleep and start fresh tomorrow; I have a lot of errands to run."

Quinn sits up and turns so she is facing me on the couch. "So what's with Brittany today? She seemed kind of shaken up when I walked in the room.

I glance towards my office and saw the door was still closed. "She started to tell me what happened to her. I guess she was a little frazzled when she heard you knocking on the hotel door." I tell her.

"So what happened?" Quinn asked quickly.

I reach down and grab my mug taking a slow sip. "Not my story to tell Q."

"Come on Santana, what happened to her?" Quinn asked me again. I could tell she was getting impatient but I honestly didn't feel it was my story to tell. It's a traumatic situation that Brittany lived through, hell that she is still living through until we pay off Vinny, or 7 Star, or whatever the hell he wants to be called.

"I'm not telling Quinn, if you want to know then ask her yourself." I snap at her. "Stop asking me."

Quinn sighed and rolled her eyes. "That bad huh?"

"Whatever you are thinking Quinn, it's 100x worse." I whisper while leaning on the arm of the couch and laying my head down on my arms.

"So what do you think he wants from her?" She asks with wide eyes.

"$80, 000." I tell her with a sigh.

"E-eighty thousand!" Quinn shrieks.

"Say it a little Quinn, I don't think the people down the damn street heard you!" I hiss at her. "Lower you damn voice."

Quinn quickly covers her mouth. "Sorry." She replies sheepishly. "Why does she owe him so much money?" She asks in a softer voice.

"He loaned her $50,000 to open her studio." I started. "But he gave her a bogus contract that would require her to pay back $80,000. She tried to give the check back but he won't accept it. She still has the check so we are going to just offer him the money and see if he will leave her alone."

"But what about the other $30,000?" She asked.

I simply closed my eyes for a few minutes than sat up and reached for the remote on the table. "Want to watch a movie?"

"Santana, please tell me you aren't giving Brittany $30,000." Quinn said quietly.

"She needs the money Q, and I have it." I say while flipping through the channels.

Quinn reaches over and snatches the remote out of my hand. "San….."

"Q, it's my money, I worked for it. I'm free to do with it what I want, and I want to give it to Brittany. It's really not up for debate." I tell her quickly. "My head is literally pounding right now and I'm not in the mood to argue."

"Santana, I'm your lawyer, remember?" Quinn said while standing up and sitting on the table to face me. "I don't think it's a good idea, at least let me look over your accounts and make sure your restaurant is protected with you moving that much money around first." Quinn grabbed my hand. "Please."

I sigh. "I don't need a lawyer right now, I need to my friend Quinn." I tell her softly.

Quinn nods, "Well let me be your lawyer first, and if I don't like what I see, then I'll be your friend and put $15,000."

My eyes widen. "Are you serious Quinn?!"

Quinn nods with a small smile. "You know I got access to my trust fund this year. I have the money to spare, and if it gets this psycho away from Brittany, then I will gladly give half the money."

I lunge forward and hug her tightly. "Thank you, thank you, thank you." I tell her over and over.

"Pipe down." She says with a smile. "Now before I go cook, I do want to talk to you about this little relationship thing you got going on with Brit."

I take a sip of my tea. "What do you mean?"

"You both are moving too fast, I see the way you cuddle every chance you get, the longing glances at one another, and the way you are blushing now I'm assuming you've kissed." Quinn says.

"We aren't together or anything, I don't think at least. Yes we kissed last night, but she kissed me Q." I say lowly.

"Hero syndrome." Quinn says while raising an eyebrow.

"What?" I ask while furrowing my eyebrows.

"Brittany has hero syndrome." Quinn nods while taking a sip of her wine. "You've basically saved her life, and now she is attracted to you."

I quickly hold up my hand. "Stop right there, Brit's always been attracted to me and vice versa."

Quinn thinks for a second. "Ok, that I will agree on, but you haven't seen her for years, she shows up at your house beaten and battered, a shell of a person, you took her in with no questions, cleaned her up and have been losing sleep to answer her every beck and call. She just left a bad, dark time in her life, and you are being soooooooo supportive of her that she is quickly falling for you again."

I close my eyes and think for second, Quinn is freaking me out a little, what if Brittany does have hero syndrome? What does that mean for us after this situation goes away. Just to be clear I'm not giving her the money to try to get back with her. I honestly and truly am still in love with Brit, but Quinn is worrying me a little.

Quinn glanced towards the office door again. "Let me guess, she told you she loves you still."

"I said it to her first." I quickly say defensively.

"Ok, so you have the hero syndrome too." Quinn replies. "You like being able to save the day Santana, you pride yourself on it. You rescued Brittany, so you have all these feelings rushing back to you."

"You don't know what you are talking about Quinn," I say angrily while standing up. "I've always loved Brit and she's always loved me."

"I just don't want you to get hurt Santana." Quinn told me softly. "Just be careful with your heart."

"I trust Brittany with my heart Q." I tell her softly.

"You know I support you right?" Quinn stated while standing up as well.

I nod. "Yea, I do." Quinn pulls me into a hug quickly. "I'm going to lay down in my bed for a little bit." I tell her when the hug broke.

"Ok, I will come get you when dinner is done." Quinn says with a smile.

I go back to my bedroom and flop down on the bed staring at the ceiling aimlessly. I'm so lost in my thoughts that I don't even notice Brittany come lay down next to me.

"Are you ok?" She asks softly.

I turn on my side propping my self up on my elbow and smile at her. "I'm fine Brit." I lean forward to kiss her softly and smile when she meets me halfway crashing our lips together. I feel her slip her tongue in my mouth and I moan softly while bringing my hand up and cupping her face.

"I like being able to kiss you all the time now." She says with as soft smile.

"I do too." I nod in agreement. "Can I ask you something?"

Brittany nods. "Sure."

"Have you ever heard of the hero syndrome?" I ask her while resting my hand on her side and gliding it up and down slowly.

She shakes her head. "What is it?"

I quickly regret bringing it up and quickly shake my head. "Never mind Brit."

Brittany shrugs lightly and grabs my hand. "You look like something is bothering you."

I furrow my eyebrows together. I forgot how well Brittany could always read me. I let out a shaky sigh. "When you said you loved me too last night in the hotel, did you only say it because I took you in and I've been helping you?"

Brittany frowned and shook her head. "I've always loved you Santana, you know that." Brittany wiggled closer. "Why would you think that?"

I shake my head quickly. "I don't know Brit, it was a stupid question, forget I even asked."

"Something must have made you think of it." Brittany coaxed.

"Well I was talking to Quinn and just never mind Brit, can we drop it please?" I ask her quickly.

"Sure." She agrees softly.

I sit up and turn on the TV flipping through channels before finally settling on a random sitcom. "I've always loved you too Brit." I say softly.

"I know." She whispers with a smile.

* * *

**Puck and Marco start their plan next chapter**

**7 Star strikes again**

**More action and a fight scene? Hmmmmm**


	11. Chapter 11 - What's Your Goal?

**Super Saturday is here! New updates on all 4 of my stories.**

**Thanks for all the follows, favs, and reviews.**

* * *

**Brittany POV**

Ever since Santana brought up the whole hero syndrome thing she's been really quiet. We've been lying in bed watching TV for probably an hour now and she hasn't said a word. It's been almost creepily quiet, well aside from me laughing at random parts of the show we were watching. I glanced over at her briefly to see if maybe she was asleep, I could tell her head was still hurting a little because her breathing was still kind of ragged, so I figured maybe she just decided to take a nap. But nope, she was wide awake. She was lying motionless and her face was devoid of all emotion. I thought maybe I did something wrong, or maybe she was mad at me for some reason.

I look over at her again and place my hand on hers gently. She looks over at me and smiles as she places her other hand on mine. She then lifts our hands and kisses them softly, before resting them back on the bed and closing her eyes.

"Are you okay?" I ask her as I turn on my side to face her.

She opens her eyes and turns to face me. "Yeah, I try to clear my mind when I have a headache sometimes. It kind of makes me feel better faster."

"Oh." I reply while quickly turning the TV off. "I can go in the living room, so it's quiet for you." I move to get out of bed but she quickly grabs my arm.

"Stay, you make me feel better too." She states with a smile while pulling me back closer to her. She then leans forward and kisses me, I allow her to deepen the kiss right away as she runs her fingers through my hair slowly. Once the kiss breaks she smiles softly at me. "See, I feel a little better already." She laughs.

I can't help but laugh back. "Seriously, how is your head Santana?"

"It's ok Brit, just a small headache; it will go away after I eat something most likely." She states as she walks her fingers up and down my arm.

"Ok, that's good." I tell her.

"You've been walking pretty good on your ankle today?" She says with a smile. "You'll be back dancing in no time at this rate."

I lift my leg and slowly wiggle my ankle around. "Yeah it's healing pretty well."

"Brit, I have to run some errands tomorrow in the morning. I'll only be gone a few hours, will you be okay here by yourself?" She starts. "I need to go talk to my banker and get the money out for you, and then swing by my restaurant and grab some things from my office."

"Y-yeah." I say quiet. "I wasn't entirely comfortable staying in her house by myself, but I can't expect Santana to stay with me every minute of every day, I mean she does have a life and a business to run and take care of.

"Brit, if you aren't just say so. I can have Quinn stay with you for or you can come, or I just won't go." Santana says while sitting up.

I shake my head. "No, it's fine Santana, go run your errands."

She just stares at me for a few minutes. "You flinched when I said Quinn's name." She noted, and I inwardly cringed. I really hoped she didn't catch that. "Why?" She asked softly.

I shrug and close my eyes. "Please talk to me Brittany, did Quinn say something to you? If so, I swear to God I have no problem kicking her ass, you know that."

I open my eyes and laugh softly. "I remember your epic fights and slap fests with Quinn, and that's not necessary. No, she didn't say anything to be me."

"Then what is it?" Santana asked.

"Quinn makes me a little uncomfortable." I tell her finally.

Santana frowns. "Why?"

"I don't know I just feel like she is judging me, and I keep catching the glances and looks she gives. I don't think she wants me around you." I whisper the last part.

Santana quickly grabbed both of my hands. "Look at me Brit." I slowly lift my eyes and gaze into her hers. "I don't care if Quinn wants you around or not. I want you around and that's all that matters." She says sternly before kissing me on the forehead. "You know how Quinn is, she likes to be in control of any and everything she can, she doesn't have the upper hand right now and it's probably driving her crazy." She laughs softly. "We've talked and she isn't judging you Brit, she's just as concerned as I am, she even offered to put up some money to help you pay off this jerk."

"Really?" I ask as my eyes widen.

Santana nods. "Yeah, really. But if you aren't comfortable being around her alone, then I will make her leave when I leave tomorrow or you can come if you want."

I shake my head. "I just…" I sigh. "It's hard for me to trust people now so I'm probably overreacting for no reason."

"That's understandable Brit." Santana reassures me. "You have every reason to be skeptical about people right now. I'm glad you trust me though."

"I know you would never hurt me." I tell her. "That's why I ran here when I finally got away."

"I'm glad you did baby." Santana says while cupping my face with her hands. "I'm so glad you did." She leans forward and places a sweet kiss on my lips just as Quinn comes in the room.

"Ummmm, sorry to interrupt but dinner is done." She says before quickly turning and leaving the room.

"Ready to eat something?" Santana asks with a smile. Before I can answer, my stomach growls and answers for me. "I'll take that as a yes." She laughs and grabs my hand to pull me up.

* * *

**PUCK POV**

After calling and checking on Quinn, to make sure she picked up San and Brit from the hotel I go back to my place and start getting ready for this stake out with Marco. A part of me feels like it's a bad idea but I have to keep the girls safe so I push the doubt in the furthest back part of my mind and pull out my duffel bag. I grab my binoculars, some rope, my nun chunks, and some duct and quickly toss them in. I then grab a blanket and fold it up placing that in as well. I put on some black jeans and a black hoodie, and grab my black hat. I slip my knife in my pocket and grab my gun from under the mattress. My gun is registered and all that good stuff but Quinn would freak if she knew I still had so I keep it tucked away.

I send Quinn a text that I'm going to Jersey for a photoshoot and that I'll be back in a day or 2, I tell her to stay at Santana's place and not to go to my place or her place for any reason.

I pull up to Marco's place and he's sitting outside of his building. He quickly tosses me a bottle of whiskey he had in his hand. "Take a drink." He says quickly while picking up the duffel bag he had with him.

I nod and take a long sip and cough slightly. "What the fuck? This is the strongest I've ever had."

"Good right?" He says with a smirk while grabbing the bottle back. "I have my uncles van for tonight. Your truck is too flashy, and my car is too loud with the new engine I put in."

I nod at him as we walk towards the black van. He opens the back and we toss our bags in. "What time are we starting? It's only 8 now." I asked when I get in the passenger seat.

"I figure we go grab some food and go through the plan again, by the time we are done it should be closer to 10 and we can head over." Marco says while starting the van.

"Sounds good." I tell him while lighting a cigarette.

"How about the diner on 3rd?" He suggests before pulling off.

* * *

**Santana POV**

My headache is going away finally, and whatever Quinn cooked actually smells really good, so I know after I eat, I should be good as new. Brit and I get to the living room and Quinn has our bowls already set out on the coffee table in front of the couch.

"What did you make?" I ask her as I sit down in front of one of the bowls. I smiled over at Brittany, glad to see her walking better on her ankle, she has a limp but she doesn't seem to be in too much pain.

"Smells good." Brittany says with a smile.

"Chili." Quinn says while jumping up and grabbing waters for everyone.

"Oh." Brittany then whispers out.

"Thanks Brit." Quinn replies while sitting cross legged on the love seat. She picks up the remote and turns to some black and white movie, at which I instantly roll my eyes at and sigh.

I eat a spoonful of chili and instantly spit it back out and shove some crackers in my mouth. Brittany and Quinn stare at me.

"Are you okay?" Quinn asked quickly.

"Damn Q how much pepper is in this?" I choke out while getting up to grab a cup of milk.

Quinn shrugged. "I followed your recipe ."

I laugh. "The recipe in the drawer?" I ask her while raising an eyebrow.

She nods and eats a bite herself and chokes it down. I laugh as her ears turn red. "That recipe is for 20 people, and to make like 5 gallons."

"Oh." She drags out.

"It's good, don't get me wrong but it's damn spicy, and that's coming from me." I tell her. "I'll grab milk for everyone."

I come back and set the gallon of milk on the table and set out 3 glasses. I look over at Brittany and see her neck and chest getting red but I notice she hasn't eaten yet, she's just staring at the bowl.

"Q, we can make it again in a few weeks and I'll show you the portions of peppers that I put in for a smaller batch." I tell her.

"Cool, thanks." She nods while quickly chugging a glass of milk.

"It's good though, you got everything else right." I wink at her so she doesn't feel like she messed up the dish.

Half way through dinner Brittany slams her bowl back on the table and leans her head on my shoulder. I lock eyes with Quinn who stares at her.

"Are you okay Brit?" Quinn asks softly. "You look really pale right now."

I feel Brittany start to shake slightly as she learns more into my body and quickly wraps her arms around my waist. I put my bowl down and grab her hands which are shaking. "Brit?"

"I….I.." Brittany stutters out.

"Q, grab a cold towel." I say calmly. Quinn nods and jumps up and runs to the bathroom.

"I want you lay down on me Brit." I slowly lean back and have her lay on my chest. She's still shaking and it's starting to creep me out a little but I know I need to stay calm.

"C-chili….I don't want ch-chili." She stutters out while holding me so tight I think she is puncturing my skin.

"You don't have to eat it Brit." I tell her while rubbing her back. Quinn comes running back with the towel.

"V-vinny….ch-chili." She whispers out as I start to feel her tears sliding down my neck.

"What's going on?" Quinn asked quietly.

"I don't know Q, but I think you should get the bowls of chili out of the living room like right away." I tell her while stroking Brittany's hair. Quinn nods and hands me the towel, she then piles up the bowls and runs to the kitchen.

"I d-don't want it." She cried out. "Please don't, I'm s-sorry."

I grab the hair tie off my wrist and put her hair in a bun quickly. I then rest the cold towel on her neck. "You don't have to eat it Brit. Quinn won't be mad." I say soothingly as Quinn comes and sits on the table to face us.

"I can make you something else Brit, or I can go buy you something from a restaurant." Quinn suggests. "Whatever you want is fine."

I remain quiet and try to keep my breathing even hoping my steady heartbeat would calm her down. "It's ok Brit."

"Vinny please don't." She whispers. "Please don't."

I look over at Quinn and my eyes start to tear up…Brittany is having some sort of flashback. It clicks with Quinn as well, so she turns off the TV and grabs a blanket and covers us up.

"I d-don't w-want it Vinny." Brittany cries out a little louder this time.

I rub her back and start whispering comforting words in her ear. "It's me baby, it's Sanny. You're safe Brit."

Quinn takes a few steps back to give us some space and sits back on the love seat and just stares at us.

"Brittany, please look at me." I whisper in her ear. "It's just me and you right now, please look at me." I coax again while pulling the cover higher on her back. I lift her shirt and run the cold towel over her back slowly. "Look at me Brit." I state again.

I can still feel her shaking but not as bad as before and she slowly lifts her head and looks me in the eye. "It's me." I say with a soft smile. "You're okay."

"S-sorry." She says with tears spilling down her face.

"Don't be, it's ok." I reassure her before I lift my head and kiss her tears away slowly. "I'm right here. Just focus on my face." She nods slowly and out the corner of my eye I see Quinn wipe her eyes and quickly leave the room.

"Sanny?" Brittany says softly.

I nod. "Just keep focusing on me Brit, Vinny's not here baby, and he won't be." I take the towel off her back and toss it on the table. I then slowly run my hands up and down her back to calm her down even more. I never take my eyes off of hers. "You're ok." I repeat once more.

She nods and collapses on me as she starts to sob. I hug her as tight as I can until she calms down. When I notice her breathing start to calm down I kiss her on the forehead and finally let out the breath I was holding.

She sniffles and sits up slightly. "I'm sorry Santana."

I sit up as well and have her lean back into me as I wrap my arm around her. "It's okay." I tell her while kissing her on the temple.

"I um, I need to wash my face." She says and jumps up quickly and hobbles to the bedroom. I then hear the bathroom door slam shut which causes me to jump a little.

I sigh and quickly wipe my own tears away and stand up to check on Quinn first before going to check on Brittany. I want to give Brit a few minutes to herself.

I knock on the door to the guestroom before I open the door. Quinn is laying on the bed staring at the ceiling.

"You ok?" I ask her while sitting on the edge of the bed.

"It's hard to see her freak out like that." Quinn replies while shaking her head. "How do you stay so calm?"

I shrug because I honestly don't know. "The only thing that crosses my mind is that I need to be there for Brit, so I push my fears and feelings to the side and focus on her." I tell her. "I'm going to check on her, thanks for dinner."

"You're welcome." Quinn sighs out.

I head back to the bathroom attached to my room and knock on the bathroom door. "Brit can I come in?"

"Yeah." She replies shakily.

I first go close the door to the bedroom before I head in the bathroom and quickly close that door as well. Brittany is sitting on the floor with her knees up to her chest holding them tightly.

I sit down next to her and rest my hands on her knees. "Do you want to talk about what just happened?" I ask her.

"Sometimes certain things give me bad flashbacks." She says sadly.

"Something happened with Vinny and chili?" I ask her. She nods and a few tears come out. I sit up briefly and grab a tissue. "Why don't we go to bed early tonight?" I suggest. "We were up late last night."

I stand up and extend my hands to her to pull her up, once I do I wrap her in a big hug. "I love you Brit."

"I love you too." She whispers back.

"I still here with you ok." I assure her before I kiss her softly on the neck and lead her back to the bedroom. We crawl in bed and she quickly cuddles close to my chest. I wrap my arm around her waist and hold her tight as I softly hum until she falls asleep, then I allow myself to fall asleep.

* * *

**PUCK POV**

"We've been out here for hours Marco and no one has entered or left the building." I groan out while glancing at my watch and seeing it's now midnight.

"Just relax." Marco replies while opening a bag of Cheetos. "It's a stake-out, this is what you do. You wait."

I sigh and close my eyes as I lean my head back on the seat. "So what's the plan when we get in the building?"

Marco pulls out the map of the building and opens it up, he uses the flashlight app on his phone to give us a little light in the van. "I say we split up and try to find the office, then we can use the walkie talkies to let the other one know."

I nod. "Alright, sounds good. You gotta another copy of the map?"

He hands me the extra copy he has and turns on the radio. "So you still thinking of asking Quinn to marry you?"

I turn and grin at him. "Yeah, I even started looking at rings. I'm going to take Santana with me when I make the final decision on the ring though, you know for that girl touch."

"Whoa, congrats man." Marco fist bumps me. "You think she will say yeah?"

"Hell yeah I do." I laugh out. "I wouldn't ask if I wasn't sure she would."

"Are you ready to settle down and get married?" He laughs.

"More than ready bro, I've cleaned up my act and I'm ready." I nod in confirmation. "Which is why after this shit, Im out….not doing stuff like this anymore."

"I hear you." Marco responds as thunder booms.

"It's not supposed to storm tonight." I state while looking through the windshield at the sky. "The sky is perfectly clear."

"I don't think that was thunder." Marco says as another boom goes off, closer this time.

"Shit!" I mumble while pulling out my knife and holding it firmly in my hand. Marco does the same with his knife.

"I need we better get out of here." He says while sticking the key in the ignition as a garbage can explodes right in front of the van.

"Start the van Marco." I tell him.

"It won't start." He says frantically while turning the key.

"What the fuck? Are you serious?" I asked him.

"Beyond serious Puck." Marco almost yells. "The shit wont start."

"Look what we have here Dennis!" A voice outside the van yells.

"What ya see Alex?"

"I see a random ass van parked in our lot." Dennis responds while kicking the side of the van.

"Start the fuckin van Marco!" I yell out to him.

"I'm trying!" Marco yells back just as something comes flying at the windshield and shatters it.

I duck to avoid getting glass in my eye just as Marco finally gets the van started. Another loud explosion goes off and everything goes dark…

* * *

**BRITTANY POV**

I jerk awake suddenly in my sleep and start to panic but I soon relax when I feel the gentle puffs of air from Santana's mouth as she sleeps against my neck. I shift slightly and relax even more when she instinctively cuddles closer to me. My mouth feels super dry so I carefully roll out of bed so I don't wake her up and quietly leave the room to head to the kitchen to grab a bottle of water.

As I walk past the living room I notice Quinn cuddled in a blanket watching the same movie we were watching earlier. She also had her ipad and laptop set up, she was typing quickly alternating between the two devices and some other paperwork she had out. She hears me enter and looks over with a smile.

"You okay Brit?" She asks while pausing the movie.

"Yeah my throat is dry so I came to get some water." I tell her. "It's late, why are you up?" I ask her after I grab my water and slowly walk to the living room.

"I couldn't sleep." She shrugs. "So I thought I would do some work."

"Oh." I half smile. "Well I'll let you get back to work."

"Wait, can we talk for a minute?" Quinn asks.

I nod and sit down on the love seat. "Sure."

"I talked to Santana earlier and she mentioned that she was going to give you $30,000 to pay off Vinny." She states.

I nod and swallow thickly. "Y-yeah."

"I offered to pay $15,000 and help you out." She says with a smile.

"She told me. I promise to pay you both back, I will figure out a way to I promise." I rush out quickly.

Quinn gets up and sits next to me. "I don't want the money back Brit, don't worry about paying me back." She sighs. "I notice you sometimes tense around me, I'm sorry if Ive done something to make you uncomfortable."

"You don't want me with Santana do you?" I ask her. "I can tell by the looks you give us sometimes."

She shakes her head. "That's not true...I just don't want San to get hurt."

"I'm not going to hurt her." I hiss out.

"I know you would never hurt her on purpose Brit." Quinn replies. "Santana's heart is all in this and I just need to know where your heart is? San has fallen head over heels for you again, she actually never stopped loving you. The night you showed up I was at her house earlier that night, and she was drinking wine and looking through her photo album crying. I need to know that you wont just take this money and leave breaking her heart again."

"She was?" I ask softly.

"Yeah, so I'm only to ask you once. Do you plan on leaving and disappearing after you get this money and pay this jerk off?" Quinn says while pulling out a blank check. "If you are planning on doing that to her then here." She hands me the check. "Take this check and take the $30,000 out of my personal account. I wont let you hurt her Brittany."

I sat there speechless, everything was happening so fast but it also felt like Quinn was talking in slow motion.

"So what's it going to be Brit?" Quinn asks me.

"I dont know what you are asking me." I tell her truthfully.

"Did you show up at Santana's door because you knew she would help you pay him off with no problem? Are you using her?" Quinn asks sternly while looking me square in the eye.

"I..." I start to answer.

"What the hell is going on Q?" Santana asks angrily from behind us.

* * *

**I know I said a fight scene this chapter but I decided to save it for the next chapter so it didnt get cut off.**

**Thoughts?**


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